DISEASES OF BEES IN MICHIGAN. 



Special Bulletin No. 107. 



BY RUSSELL H. KELTY. 



Introduction, 



Foul-brood is the name given to certain diseases which attack bees in the 

 brood stage. Since it causes a yearly loss of many thousand colonies and 

 the destruction of a great amount of apparatus, beekeepers consider foul- 

 brood to be a very serious menace to the industry of honey production. 

 Each succeeding year greater effort is made to control its spread, through 

 education and legislation; and armed with the more perfect knowledge which 

 thorough investigation has developed, the beekeeper is now better able to 

 cope with the situation than heretofore. 



The beekeeping profession owes much to Dr. G. F. White, whose thorough 

 and exhaustive research work on bee diseases has given to the world a great 

 deal of information concerning the foul-broods, and who from his work, 

 has been able to offer invaluable suggestions as to methods of treatment. 



Foul-brood is found practically wherever bees are kept both in America 

 and in foreign countries. Certain, areas in the United States are now dis- 

 ease free, however, probably because no infecting material has yet been in- 

 troduced. The ease and rapidity with which foul-brood spreads from place 

 to place is well-nigh disheartening, and it is only by constant vigilance and 

 rigid adherence to precautionary measures that the fight against its ravages 

 can be won. Under existing conditions of legislation and beekeeping prac- 

 tice it is folly to expect to continually remain free from disease. Each bee- 

 keeper must be forever watching for its appearance and prevent its spread 

 by immediate and effectual treatment. It is for the purpose of supplying 

 the beekeeper with the knowledge necessary for the control of foul-brood 

 that this bulletin 'is written. 



American Foul-Brood. 



Of the three foul-brood diseases, American foul-brood is considered the 

 worst. The disease is called American not because it is found more generally 

 in America than elsewhere, but because an American scientist. Dr. G. F. 

 White, Bureau of Entomology, Washington, D. C., was the first man to 

 isolate the causal organism. 



Due to the fact that colonies affected with American foul-brood must be 

 deprived of their stores and combs and placed in a clean hive, a considerable 

 loss is experienced by the beekeeper. The disease is infectious in nature and 

 easily carried from hive to hive through the medium of honey. Whole yards 

 may become diseased during a comparatively short period if not given close 

 attention. Also as the method of treatment of American foul-brood is al- 

 together different from the usual treatment of other foul-broods, it is essen- 

 tial that the beekeeper be familiar with the symptoms of the disease so that 

 he may recognize it immediately and be able to distinguish it from other 

 diseases. 



