August, 7 18] 
CARR: UNUSUAL BEE DISEASE 
349 
ysis, in very few cases was there observed any unusual distention of the 
abdomen. Neither were there hairless or trembling bees noticed nor 
were the dead bees massed in front of the hive as is usual in paralytic 
bees. An abnormal condition noticed in the hives was the great abund¬ 
ance of stored pollen and the unusually small amount of unsealed honey 
in the combs. In some hives the stored pollen amounted to as much as 
two combs full. 
An apiary of Mr. Schilke less than two miles distant located in the 
full sunlight was only slightly affected. 
The apiary of Mr. J. Kridel, less than one mile from the badly 
affected apiary, in the shade, was also badly affected. The conditions 
within the hives were practically the same, i. e., a superabundance of 
pollen and an unusually small amount of unsealed honey. Dead 
bees from the ground were examined for arsenic with negative results. 
The apiary of Mr. J. Errickson in Freehold, four miles from the 
Schilke and Kridel apiaries, hybrid bees, located in the shade was 
similarly affected. Mr. Errickson noticed that many bees after re¬ 
peated attempts succeeded in flying. 
Many apiaries in this vicinity were examined, some containing hy¬ 
brid bees, some Italian, in the shade and fully exposed to the sunlight 
and all were found more or less affected. 
This disease appeared coincidently with a period of “dull” weather 
when the bees gathered an usual amount of pollen and little or no 
nectar. With the coming of fair weather the disease disappeared but 
not until the colonies were so depleted as to be of no value as surplus 
honey producers. Aside from the bees in this vicinity covering an 
area not more than seven miles in diameter no reports were received 
of a like trouble within the state. 
From the evidence it was assumed that the bees were suffering from 
a digestive disturbance caused by a diet containing too large a pro¬ 
portion of nitrogenous matter. In support of this theory is the super¬ 
abundance of pollen stored in the combs of the infected colonies, not 
only in these New Jersey apiaries but also in apiaries in New York, 
Ohio and Ontario, and the disappearance of the trouble upon the com¬ 
ing of weather favorable to nectar gathering. Antagonistic to this 
theory is the presence of sealed honey in the combs. Huber 1 says 
capped honey is never used in summer except in case of extreme 
necessity. If we may assume then that the bees show a great disin¬ 
clination to uncap sealed honey at this season of the year the theory 
holds good. 
1 Huber, F., 1821, “New Observations on the Natural History of Bees,” third edi¬ 
tion—Edinburgh. 
