14 



The lice attach themselves to the hacks of the bees, usually one louse 

 to each bee, and takes its nourishment from the body of the bee. A 

 large population of the worker bees of a colony may be infested with; 

 the lice thruout the season. The louse is more apparent in weak 

 colonies and seemingly more abundant in poor seasons. This must be 

 considered as relative, since a strong colony will survive a more se- 

 vere attack of the pest than a weak colony, and of course all colonies- 

 are handicapped in gaining strength during unfavorable weather con- 

 ditions. The lice work sometimes on the drones, but not nearly as 

 extensively as on the workers and the queen. Frequent examination 

 of a colony should enable the beekeeper to determine the presence of 

 this pest. At the present time, the control measures are rather in- 

 direct and not entirely satisfactory. When the infestation is slight,. 

 it seems advisable to destroy the adults of the colony. The medical 

 treatments which have been proposed do not seem to be wholly satis- 

 factory. 



Bee Moths. The moths have been a pest of bees since the' earliest 

 beekeeping times. They are found wherever bees are kept. It is in- 

 teresting that a pest which is so old as the bee moth should persist 

 for centuries without any apparent natural factors of control. There 

 are two kinds of moths, but the greater bee moth is by far the more 

 common than the lesser. Their habits vary and of course their size 

 should enable the beekeeper to determine which species is prevalent. 



Greater Bee Moth: This is now considered mostly as a pest of 

 poorly kept apiaries. The bee moth is not the cause of any condition 

 in the apiary, for it appears after other facts or mismanagement have 

 occurred. Weak colonies are subject to the attack of this pest and 

 black bees seem to be more susceptible than Italian bees. The pest is 

 considered as a secondary invader of the beehives and consequently 

 the first factor in the control is to have all colonies with Italian bees 

 and as strong as possible. 



The moth flies entirely at night, generally during the evening twi- 

 light. At this time it is possible for the moth to gain entrance to the 

 hive, especially in a weak colony which is poorly guarded. The eggs- 

 are preferably laid on the comb and when the young larvae hatch they 

 burrow thru the cell wall to the mid-rib of the comb. Here they are 

 quite secure from the attacks of the bees and their work can progress, 

 with little disturbance. Their feeding areas are well protected with a. 

 very tough silken thread, so that when they are once established in a 

 comb it is very difficult for the bees to reach them to fight and destroy 

 them. The larvae, when their growth is completed, may leave the 

 comb and spin their cocoons between the" end bar and the hive body,. 

 or perhaps on the underside of the inner cover. These cocoons are 

 parchment like and serve as a most excellent protection. When the 

 combs become badly infested the bees apparently lose all hope of the 

 fight and in some cases leave the combs to the ravages of the worms. 

 In well managed apiaries the bee moth is able to maintain itself only 

 thru its work on stored combs. It seems to preserve its numbers so 

 that whenever a colony is weakened it is ready prey for the moth. 



The control measures are first to keep all colonies in strong condi- 

 tion and in numbers and then direct the energy toward protecting the- 

 stored combs. The combs which are not on the beehive should be 

 examined to detect the early work of this pest. The combs can be 

 fumigated and for this purpose carbon bisulphide has been quite satis- 

 factory. This material is effective against all stages of the moth, hut 

 it must be remembered that this material is inflammable and every 

 possible precaution is necessary to keep it away from all possible 

 sources of flre. One should be more careful even than in handling: 



