Pest disease program

It is necessary for the beekeeper to be aware of the diseases and pest they may encounter while keeping bees. We suggest that you use good hygienic methods for your beekeeping tools. An earlier chapter discussed what you as a beekeeper should be doing to prevent the spread of disease by keeping clean tools and equipment.

New beekeepers are often unaware of the diseases or pest that may attack their bees. The first job when opening any hive is to check for diseases. Look for signs that pest have been attacking your bees and hive. Once you identify a problem, take action to correct it. The following photographs and commentary are designed to help you look for certain things to help in this effort. Not all diseases are listed here. Many general bee books will list far more than I have listed here but these are the major problems. Many beekeepers will never encounter all of these things. The most serious problem by chance comes first because we have used an alphabetical arrangement in listing the items. It is American foulbrood and every beekeeper needs to know what it is, what it looks like, and what to do about it.

Diseases	All pest and diseases are referred to by common names
American foulbrood A brood disease	Identification: A bacterial disease caused by Bacillus larvae . It can be found in every state in the U.S. It is spread by robbing bees and poor beekeeping practices. It can be identified from a shot gun appearance of the capped brood. The capping over the brood will be sunken and some will have holes. If opened the cells will contain a gooey substance that was formerly a larva and generally will be coffee or tobacco spit color. If the larva have not dried out to form scales, the mass of gooey substance can be stirred with a toothpick and if the gooey substance "ropes" (sticks to the toothpick and stretches out of the cell into a fine thread) is an almost sure positive identification of it. Many people associate a rotten odor to a hive with American foulbrood. Treatment: First and best is to burn the frames of comb and the bees then thoroughly clean and disinfect all wood hive parts. Many beekeepers char the insides of hive bodies, the floor of the bottom board, the inner cover and top cover. Some state allow the use of terramycin. Some states require the entire destruction of the hive equipment and bees. We suggest you find out what your state department of agriculture allows.
Chalkbrood a brood disease	Identification: A fungal disease caused by Ascosphaera apis . It is now found throughout the United States. It is a disease of stress in the early spring to early summer. Severe cases can be found in the comb later in the year. Often the bees will try to remove the mummy larva -- it is called chalk brood because the mummies are chalk like in appearance and touch. These mummies can often be seen at the entrance of the hive. Treatment: There is no chemical approved treatment for this disease. The best management plan would be to: strengthen a weak hive with more brood and bees, replace the queen (literature indicates that it might be genetic characteristic) with a queen of known hygienic behavior. To avoid spreading chalkbrood, you can avoid using pollen from a chalkbrood hive for supplemental feeding and avoid mixing frames of comb from a chalkbrood hive with other hives you may have.
European foulbrood A brood disease	Identification: A bacterial diseased caused by Mellisococcus pluton. It is found in all parts of the United States. This is not considered a major bee disease such as the American foulbrood disease. The bacteria that cause this disease multiply very rapidly and cause the death of the larva before being capped over. The cappings in a hive with EFB will not be shrunken and pitted as in AFB. The larva will be discolored as shown to the left. Normally the larva will die in the "C" shape shown. The effect of EFB is to reduce a colonies bee population and thus reduce a honey crop. Treatment: Good beekeeping hygiene will keep this disease in control, however, if a hive should be found with EFB it is important to prevent any robbing of the hive and frames from this hive should not be transferred to any other hive. A colony of bees treated with terramycin - TM recovers rapidly.
Healthy gut of honey bee Nosema An adult bee disease	Identification: A protozoan disease caused by Nosema apis. Although most beekeepers do not consider this a major disease, I am going to list it as such. It is very damaging to colonies of bees that over winter in the north. It kills more hives of bees than it is given credit for. You can not see this disease because it is caused by spores which germinate in the midgut of the honey bee. Symptoms include: shortened life span, fecal deposits on the inside of the hive and often on the outside of the hive. One way to check for nosema is to pull the digestive tract out of a honey bee. Healthy digestive tracts are tan in color. If it is white, the bee is usually infected with nosema. Treatment : The antibiotic Fumagillin sold as Fumidil-B mixed with sugar syrup and fed to the bees in the fall and spring. Literature suggest 1 gal. of syrup per hive. 0.5 grams are mixed with 6 gallons of syrup to feed 6 hives. This is an adult bee disease.
Paralysis An Adult bee disease	Identification: It is a viral infection of the adult bee. Often the beekeeper will notice that the bees are hairless or very glossy as in old age. One might notice a number of bees crawling on the ground around the hive entrance, or trembling on the landing board unable to fly. I should point out that the trembling could be a symptom of pesticide poisoning as well. In some cases the bees just disappear or dwindle away. Treatment: No treatment for a viral disease. Requeening with good stock may help.
Sacbrood A brood disease	Identification: It is a viral infection of the larva and is named after the sac-like appearance of dead larvae. The skin of the larva is tough and rubbery and if pulled from the cell with a pair of tweezers, will look like a thin sac covering the dead larva. It is not a common bee disease. Treatment : There is no treatment for viral diseases. Just use good sanitary beekeeping practices while working with bees and if you find a colony with this disease, do not mix other hive frames etc. with this colony. Replacing the queen with a queen from less susceptible stock may help.
Small hive beetles	Identification: The SHB is found primarily in the Southern states of the United States but can be found in many other states especially states that import bees for pollination. It is called: Aethina tumida . This small beetle is black and can be found moving rapidly inside the hive when exposed to sun light. The Larvae may be mistaken for wax moth larva but they do not spin cocoons as the wax moth larva and leave a slime trail within the hive. They can make a complete mess of a hive which can result in the loss of comb in the frames and loss of honey crop. This beetle seems to prefer weak hives especially queenless hives to do its damage. Treatment: Several treatments are available to the beekeeper for SHB. First, a ground drench - SHB larva crawl from the entrance of a hive and pupate in the ground around the hive stand. The product is called: GardStar®. Always read label directions for the use of the product. Second, CheckMite+ - TM a strip which controls both SHB and Varroa mites. This is a restricted use chemical and you need to check your state dept. of Agriculture to see if it is approved in your state.
Tracheal mites	Identification: This mite is named Acarapis woodi . It was first identified as the Isle of Wight Disease. This mite has become well established in the United States except Hawaii. These mites can be observed under a microscope. They are found in the tracheae of adult honey bees. Highly infested hives usually die in the fall or winter. One may find few bees in a dead hive. This is contrary to starvation when most of the bees will be on the face of the comb -- dead. Early detection is important. If the beekeeper notices a rapid decline in population, the situation is already out of hand. Fortunately, breeding better queen bees with resistance to the tracheal mite has reduced the tracheal mite problem from what it was 10 years ago. Treatment: Again, we are fortunate to have several treatments for this parasite. Mite-A-Thol®. is a menthol packet which can be placed in the hive. It is claimed to be 97% effective? A much less expensive treatment is the use of solid vegetable oil such as Crisco with powdered sugar. This is made into an oil patty and placed into the hive on wax paper. The bees eat the sugar and get oil on their body which most likely mask the odor the mite uses to find the opening to the trachea.
Varroa mites	Identification: This mite was known as varroa jacobsoni but is now correctly called varroa destructor. Varroa mites can be found in the United States except Hawaii. The mite is small but can be seen with the naked eye. Mites are about the size of a pin head and are reddish/brown in color. They can be detected by several methods. One is with varroa screens under which is a sticky board. Mites fall through the screen onto the sticky board where then can then be detected and counted to determine the infestation level. Second method involves checking drone brood for mites like shown in the picture to the left and the third method involves scooping up 100 or so bees and subjecting them to a sugar roll or ether roll test. The sugar roll test does not kill the bees and is preferred. The method is simple. Scoop up the bees into a pint jar, add powdered sugar (a tablespoon will do) and shake and roll the jar. Varroa mites will drop off the bees to the bottom of the jar where they can be counted. Treatment: Chemical and non chemical treatments are possible. Chemical treatments include the use of strips called (CheckMite+ or Apistan). Or a beekeeper might use special drone comb in frames which are removed and frozen to kill drone brood on which the varroa mites seem to prefer to reproduce.
Pests	To see Ohio Department of Agriculture Pest
Ants	Identification: Ants are a nuisance in the bee hive. They often build nest under the top cover and above the inner cover where the bees don't bother them. They seem to cause very little damage to the bees except be a curse to the beekeeper who wants to control them. Treatment: Any chemical used to destroy ants will also kill bees. One could set the bee hive on a stand supported by four legs. Each leg would fit into a can filled with oil preventing ants from climbing up the side of the hive. Don't spend too much time worrying about them.
Bears	Identification: Bear damage is rather easy to see. Hives are smashed to bits by the bears to get to the brood comb and honey. They scatter the equipment around the yard. One will find many frames dragged away from the boxes with the comb eaten and pulled from the frames. Treatment: The killing of these large animals is being called into question more and more in today's world. The best thing a beekeeper can do is install an electric bear fence as a preventative measure. Place the apiary in a location out of their path.
Birds	Birds can take a heavy toll on adult honey bees. There is very little that can be done about this. You should be aware that some of the following birds are considered bee feeders. martins swallows woodpeckers sparrows
Cattle	Identification: Beekeepers that place hives of bees on farms may concern themselves with the problems caused by cattle. Cattle like to rub up against bee hives and thus knock them over or off their bottom boards. Cows have heavy hair over most of their body and bees do not seem to be able to drive a real itchy cow off. Treatment: If you are going to place hives of bees on a farm where cattle or livestock have access to the hives of bees, you need to think about and getting permission to erect a portable fence around the hives.
fire ants	Identification: Solenopsis sp. are nasty very small ants. They are reddish brown in color. The bite leaves a pustule on the body of the person bitten. They are very common in the Southern U.S. California is trying to keep the fire ant out of the state by checking pollinating vehicles that enter the state and stop any of those who may have a stray ant aboard. The bite itches and burns for a considerable time after the insect has done its work. The mounds of the fire ants nest are visible in fields, pasture, and next to bee hives that sit directly on the ground as shown. Treatment : Get bee hives off the ground. Use pallets or blocks. Because there are so many nest in an area, it is almost impossible to kill them. Avoid kneeling on the ground when working in a fire ant area. Be sure to wear clothing that can be fitted inside boots or fastened tightly around the ankle to prevent them from climbing up ones leg.
frogs/toads	Identification: Frogs and toads are found near water and gardens. They are considered very valuable insect catchers. Most gardeners would delight to have toads/frogs in their garden. They may eat some bees but will not deplete the populations of bees which might cause the beekeeper some concern. Treatment: None
Ground hogs	Identification: Ground hogs in themselves do not harm bee as far as I am aware. However, they do burrow into the ground around bee yards and present a risk to the beekeeper who might step into the hole and break an ankle. Treatment: They are considered pest by most farmers and are shot on sight. They can also be trapped.
mice/rats	Identification: Rodents such as mice and rats are common pest to the beekeeper. They build nest in hive boxes, destroy comb in the frames, and eat holes in equipment. In addition they leave dropping all over the place. Treatment: In the fall of the year, the beekeeper can do a great deal to keep mice out of hives by placing a mouse guard on the entrance to the hive. These are sold by bee suppliers but you can make effective mouse guards. If you can restrict the entrance to the hive to 1/4 of an inch, bees will be able to come and go, but mice will not be able to enter. Any holes in the hive of 1/2 inch or more will allow free access to the inside of the hive by mice. Rats can be a problem in storage areas where bee equipment is kept. Bait can be set out for both rats and mice, special traps are also available, and a cat works wonders.
raccoon	Identification: Have you even encountered an animal just about as smart as you are? If you are storing bee honey supers in an open shed, "coon" will most likely find them. They love to pull frames from the hive bodies and build a nest to raise their young. They will even remove covers such as plywood or inner covers from stacked supers. And those boardman feeder jars outside the hive used for feeding. Once the "coon" discover them you will be lucky to find them. The jars are rolled away from the hives and the "coon" drink your syrup. For those who raise queens, "coon" are a special problem. They learn how to pull a nuc over on its side, pull out the frames, and eat the brood. Treatment: Raccoon can be trapped. Often you may have coon hunters in your area that would be more than delighted to take up the hunt for them. Because coon carry or can carry rabies, many states require that they be killed rather than caught and released.
reptiles	Identification: The type of snake you may encounter will depend on where you live. In some areas, the beekeeper will need to be very cautious because of poisonous snakes. Snakes can be a danger in the South and Southwestern U.S. Our experience with snakes is the warnings we had received in the rattle snake areas of southern Ohio and Georgia. When walking through high grass and rough terrain, the beekeeper needs to be vigilant. Many beekeepers encounter snakes -- non poisonous -- as they work hives of bees. Snakes are often found under bottom boards and if they can get into the hive, under top covers. The danger of snakes is not to the bees but rather to the beekeeper. Treatment: Avoid snakes. They sliver away quickly when disturbed. Many snakes are very beneficial so don't be in a hurry to kill them.
skunks	Identification: This is a hive being visited by a skunk or several skunks. Notice the path in front of the hive and to the right side. Skunks will scratch the bottom board landing area or the front of the hive body to get the bees to come out of the hive. They then eat the bees they catch. If you see matted down grass or in this case, bare earth in front or around the front of your hive, you most likely have a skunk dining on your bees. Treatment: Skunks visit in the evening and dark hours. Watching for them can take some time but shooting them is usually not an option. There are several things that can be done. First, raising the hive off the ground 16 to 18 inches will help. Or you can spread lye around the entrance. When the skunk get lye on its paws it will lick them and the result is bitterness. One can also use chicken netting around the hive to prevent the skunk from getting close enough to the hive to feed. I like the wire trap with a door that shuts when the animal steps on a trap lever. I throw a blanket (old one) over the trap to move it. I have caught as many as four skunks in a bee yard in one year.
squirrels	Identification: Squirrels find the shelter of bee hives on occasion to spend the winter. As shown in this photo I took as a bee inspector, the squirrels had stored a number of acorns above the brood nest. They destroy the comb much like mice but the area destroyed is much larger. Believe it or not, but this hive still had bees going in and out of it below the squirrel nest. Treatment: Prevent ways for squirrels to get into the hive. They need a larger opening than mice.
We hope to get some real photos of termites. We had to borrow a picture from the 1952 Insects The Yearbook of Agriculture published by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture termites	Identification: Termites bore into wood hive parts, especially those parts that touch the ground. They do a great deal of damage. If you see what looks like large winged ants, you are looking at female termites at swarming time. Treatment: Special restricted pesticides are used to kill termites. Do not use them around the bees. Non chemical treatment would require the beekeeper to get all wood equipment up off the ground. Placing hives on hive stands made of cinder block or concrete will help. Professionals use bait traps and foundation spray around dwellings.
Wax moths	Identification: The picture to the left is damage done to a comb by wax moth. This picture can be clicked on to enlarge. The enlarged picture will clearly show larvae that feed and form tunnels lined with webs There are two general types found in the United States: Galleria mellonella L. the Greater Wax Moth and Achroia grisella F. the Lesser Wax Moth. Both do considerable damage to bee hives that are in weak condition and stored comb in supers. Wax moths are a serious problem in warm weather and dark conditions. They can do a lot of damage in a very short period of time. Treatment: Wax moths attack weak hives. Strong hives will kept them under control. Wax moths do not like light. Exposing equipment to light, closing up equipment tightly and fumigating with "Para-moth" (Para-Dichlorobenzene crystals) a product available from most bee suppliers, and using biological control such as Bacillus thuringiensis.
Wasp/ yellowjackets	Identification: Often a beekeeper will see yellow jackets trying to get into the entrance of a hive. If the hive is weak, a number of yellow jackets will invade and steal honey reserves. Yellow jackets are insect opportunist. If a beekeeper feels that yellow jackets killed his/her hive, what in fact happened with the hive occurred before the yellow jacket began to rob it out. Treatment: Keep hives strong. Yellow Jackets do not bother strong hives. They find weak hives and take advantage of the few bees who try to defend the hive. The observation of yellow jackets working at the entrance of a bee hive should indicate to the beekeeper that this hive needs inspecting. Placing an entrance reducer on the hive reduced to the smallest opening is one way to help the bees defend themselves.