DISK ASKS OK i'.i:KS. 



140 



DISKASKS OF liKKS. 



A lew may leel that they can not sacrilice 

 iii) id brood; for in the diseased combs there 

 may be only a few affected cells. Such 

 I'lames can be placed in an upper story over 

 perforated zinc, while the bees and queens 

 in the lower hive can be put on frames of 

 loundation. As scon as the brood liatches 

 Diit above, treat as before directed. 



In des^-ril)iiis' the next disease we can not 

 do better t.han to compare the two together. 



KIIHOKKAX AND AMKRICAN FOUL 

 BROOD DIFFKKKNTIATKD. 



iMiropcan foul bidod (black brood) lirst 

 manifested it;<elf on this side of the Atlantic 

 in New York, although, as already stated, it 

 was first discovered by Chesliire and Cheyne 

 ill Europe, and hence the name, European 

 foul brood. In several of the external symp- 

 toms it resemliles foul brood, but lacks two 

 oi- three very important characteristics of 

 that disease. First, the European disease is 

 seldom if ever ropy. The dead matter, does 

 not, as in the American variety, become a 

 shapeless gluey mass, leaving no semblance 

 of the original grub, stretching out like glue 

 when a toothpick is inserted in it; but, on 

 the contrary, it is of a watery consistency, 

 and seems to be confined mostly within the 

 shriveled skin of the dead grub, which may 

 vary in color all the way from alight yellow^ 

 or dark brown, to black. A grub that dies 

 with American foul brood seems to melt, as 

 it were, into one mass of sticky stuff that 

 adlieres to the bottom or side of the cell; 

 while a grub that dies from the European 

 disease retains its general form, though 

 shriveled up, and will remain in the oid of 

 the cell. It may, however, fall over on the 

 side of the cell; but the shajie of the grub in 

 an elongated state will be practically the 

 same except that it is shriveled brown or 

 black. American foul brood smells like old 

 glue. European foul brood, in the earlier 

 stages, has a sort of soured or musty smell. 

 In the hifd' stages it takes on a foul odor 

 something like that of the American disease, 

 in which state the sour odor seems to be lost 

 or obscured by the more pronounced odor of 

 decay. American foiU brood seems to att'ect 

 both the sealed and unsealed grub, Itut 

 more especially the sealed brood; and when 

 ' he dead matter is allowed to dry, it adheres 

 very tightly to the lower side of the cell wall. 

 The European disease, on the other hand, 

 seems to affect more particularly the un- 

 ssaled brood, although much of the sealed 

 brood dies, and has a i)erf orated and sunken 

 capping, very much like that of foul Ijiood. 



Hut a dead grub never adheres either to U\^ 

 side or the bottom of the cell. The larva- 

 of Euiopean foid brood when first affected 

 have on the body a yellow spot; and before 

 dying they move uneasily in the cell. After 

 death they turn yellow, then brown, and 

 finally black, ultimately drying down to a 

 black scale or what ap])ea.rs to be an empty 

 skin of the larva. 



TO CrUE EUROPEAN FOUE RltOOD 

 (BLACK BROOD). 

 The method of treatment is just the same 

 as for foul brood in every particular. But 

 Mr. E. W. Alexander, who has something 

 like 700 colonies in one locality, reports that 

 lie was successful in eradicating this dread- 

 ful disease from his apiary by dequeening 

 and putting in Italian blood; but before giv- 

 ing the new queen he keeps the hive queen- 

 less at least three weeks, during which time 

 not a particle of brood is allowed to develop. 

 The honey in the combs should be exhaust- 

 ed as far as possible; and during the three 

 weeks the bees will have polished u)) and 

 otherwise cleaned the C(nnbs in pi eparation 

 for a laying queen, which they expect to get, 

 but which is purposely kept from them until 

 the alloted t:me has elapsed. A young vig- 

 orous Italian queen is then introduced. 

 While we have received reports from some 

 who have used this tieatment, and have 

 been successful, the foul brood inspectois of 

 New York, from their experience of the dis- 

 ease, do not think that the treatment goes 

 far enough. AVe would not advise this 

 treatment except in c ises wliere the disease 

 seems to get a foothold and defies treat- 

 ment — that is, lingers on. Then all colo- 

 nies, whether showing the disease or not, 

 should be tieated by the dequeening process 

 and afterward requeened. 



PICKLED BROOD AND ITS CAUSE. 



The name pickled l)rood has been applied 

 to almost any form of dead brood that was 

 not black or foul brood. In a general way. 

 it seems to cover, then, any form of brood 

 that is dead from some natural causes not 

 related to disease of any sort. Pickled brood 

 looks very much like Evuopean or black 

 brood. The lar^'a dies, lying on its side in 

 the bottom of the cell, both ends of which 

 begin to turn a little yellow, brown, and 

 then black. The discoloration seems to 

 creep along until the whole body is involved. 

 About this time the larva begins to shrivel 

 and finally dries up. The real pickled brood 

 is probably nothing more nor less than 

 starved brood. If there is a lack of stores 



