72 



the time of capping, changes to a hght buff, then to brown. It is, 

 however, when the brood has been capped that the novice is better 

 able to detect the presence of disease. 



In the early stages of an attack a capped cell here and there appears 

 somewhat different from the surrounding healthy brood. Instead of the 

 cappings or seals being bright, full, and of convex form, characteristic 

 of healthy brood, they are of a dull blackish-brown colour, and flat or 

 sunken (see Fig. 53), an indication that the cells contain dead pupas. 

 The disease rapidly spreads to surrounding cells and combs if allowed 

 to take its course, tiU finally no brood can hatch, and the colony 

 succumbs. On opening some of the cells a thin glue-hke coffee-coloured 

 mass will be noticed, which on the insertion of a splinter of wood 

 adheres to the point, and can be drawn rope-like for some little distance 

 out of the cells. Later on this glue-Mke substance dries up into the 

 before-mentioned black scale-like body. 



Other symptoms are " pin-poles " and ragged perforations in the 

 cappings of the cells and a very disagreeable smell resembUng that of 

 heated glue or tainted meat, which may be sometimes, though rarely, 

 detected at some yards away from a badly infected hive in close 

 weather. The characteristic odour cannot easily be detected in the 

 earliest stages, even when an infected comb is placed close to the 

 nose, but some slight difference can be noticed between that and 

 healthy comb at all times. 



Symptoms of European Foul-hrood. 



It will be well to make known here the symptoms of this form of 

 foul-brood, as described in Circular No. 79 of the United States Bureau 

 of Entomology. 



" Adult bees in infected colonies are not very active, but do succeed 

 in cleaning out some of the dried scales. This disease attacks larvae 

 earlier than does American foul-brood {Bacillus larvae), and a com- 

 paratively small percentage of the diseased brood is ever capped ; the 

 diseased larvae which are capped over have sunken and perforated 

 cappings. The larvae when first attacked show a small yellow spot on 

 the body near the head, and move uneasily in the cell ; when death 

 occurs they turn yellow, then brown, and finally almost black. 

 Decaying larvae which have died of this disease do not usually stretch 

 out in a long thread when a small stick is inserted and slowly removed ; 

 but occasionally there is a very slight " ropiness," but this is never 

 very marked. The thoroughly dried larvae form irregular scales, which 

 are not strongly adherent to the lower side wall of the cell. There is 

 very httle odour from decaying larvae which have died from this disease, 

 and when an odour is noticeable it is not the " glue-pot " odour of 

 American foul-brood, but more nearly resembles that of soured dead 

 brood. This disease attacks drone and queen larvae very soon after 

 the colony is infected. It is, as a rule, much more infectious than 

 American foul-brood, and spreads more rapidly. On the other hand, 

 it sometimes occurs that the disease will disappear of its own accord i 

 a thing which the author never knew to occur in a genuine case of 

 American foul-brood. European foul-brood is most destructive during 

 the spring and early summer, often almost disappearing in late summer 

 and autumn." 



Caution to those importing Bees and Queens. 



It is now generally understood that disease (" foul-brood " and 

 " black-brood ") may readily be conveyed from one country to another 

 through the food supplied to the queens and bees, be it honey in combs 

 or the usual " candy " with which the queen-cages are furnished. The 



