ill l BACTERIOLOGY OF BEE DI8E \-l C8, 1 < 



Bacillus 8ubgastricu8, Bacterium tnycoides, Pseudomonas fluort scens //</ 



;iml two referred to -is Bacillus /.'. and Saccharomyces l ■ Others less frequentlj 



preseul have been Isolated, but m>t Btudied. 



i '.» i in two samples of brood with unknown disease there was found u species 



(•I yeast plain here referred to as Saccharomyces O. 



SUM M OKY TO PART 1 1. 



Following is a brief summary of the results of the presenl investigati »n ol 



diseases ; 



(l » There are a number of diseased conditions which affect the apiary. 



i 1' I The disease which seems to cause the most rapid loss to the apiarist is 

 European foul brood, in which is found Bacillus <ilr<i — tirst isolated, studied, 

 and uamed by Cheshire and Cheyne in 1885. 



i 3 i The distribution of Unci 1 1 us alvei in the infected hive is as follows ; 



(a) The greatest number of infecting germs are found in the bodies of dead 

 larwe. 



i // 1 The pollen stored in the cells of the foul-brood combs contains many of 

 these infecting organisms. 



(C) The honey stored in brood combs infected with this disease has lie mi 

 Found to contain a few bacilli of this species. 



(</) The surface of combs, frames, and hives may be contaminated. 



(e) The wings, head, legs, thorax, abdomen, and intestinal contents of adult 

 bees were found to be contaminated with Bacillus alvei. 



i/') Bacillus alvei may appear in cultures made from the ovary of queens 

 from European foul-brood colonies, but the presence of this species suggests 

 contamination from the body of the queen while the cultures are being made 

 nid has no special significance. 



i I i The disease which seems to be most widespread in the United States we 

 have called American foul brood, and the organism which has been found con 

 Stantly present in the disease we have called Bacillus Itirnr. This disorder 

 was thoughl by many in this country and other countries as well to lie the foul 

 br 1 described by Cheshire and Cheyne, but such is not the case. 



lot From the nature of American foul brood it is thought that the organism 

 has a similar distribution to that of Bacillus alvei. 



(6) It appears that European foul brood was erroneously called "New York 

 bee disease " or M black brood"' by Dr. William It. Howard in 1900. 



(Ti There is a diseased condition affecting the brood of bees which is being 



called by the bee keepers "'pickle brood.*' No conclusion can be drawn from 



the investigation so far as to the cause of the disease. 



(8) Vspergillus pollinis, ascribed b> Dr. William R. Howard as the cause of 

 [tickle brood, has not been found in this investigation and is not believed by the 

 author to have any etiological relation to the so-called "pickle brood." 



(9) Palsy or paralysis is a diseased condition of the adult bees. No 'oii- 

 clusion can yet be drawn as to its cause. 



(10) Formaldehyde gas as ordinarily used in the apiaries is insufficient to 



insure complete disinfect jon, 



I ONI l.i --ions. 



in a paragraph the author wishes, if possible, to presenl the status of the bee 



diseases in this country, it should be remembered, Brstly, thai "black brood" 



can now be dropped from our vocabulary, and probably does nol exisl ;-seeondly, 



lhat the term " foul brood " was being applied to two distincl diseases, one of 



e diseases we now refer to as European, foul brood, because it first received 



30547— No. 7iV-(i7m 2 



