...Some interesting observations about nosema apis that hadn't come across my radar before (perhaps this is all common knowledge):

HONEY BEE PATHOLOGY1
By L. BAILEY
Rothamsted Experimental Station, Harpenden, England
Annu. Rev. Entomol. 1968.13:191-212.


"Indeed, infected bees fed
pollen live longer than healthy ones not fed on it ( 23) . Although nearly
twice as many spores develop in bees fed abundant protein as in those not
receiving it ( 24) , their effect is mitigated by the rich protein diet. Accordingly,
the severity of infection in a colony is probably better measured
by the percentage of bees infeceted in a sample than by the number of
spores that the sample contains. It has been implied that infection spreads
when large amounts of protein are consumed ( 25) . Although the increased
spore production in such bees increases the chances of spreading the infection,
spread will be greater only when conditions also cause the bees to defaecate
within the cluster, not simply because there are more spores per bee
than before."

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