>> Do dead drones function as "bee juice" in this context?

> ... that would depend upon whether those drones were infected with
> something.  So let's look at the potential pathogens:

Speculation and rationalization could be counter-productive and
distracting, especially when a test is fairly easy to do.  It is as
simple as putting frozen drone brood into hives and watching.

For that matter, enough people have done that that long enough that we
should have heard by now.  That result would be notable -- just like
Randy's report about the unexpected effects of feeding bee juice.

I have not heard of any hive deaths being reported after putting frozen
drones back in.  Has anyone?

The real question IMO is whether bee juice -- even juice from a sample
of 50 or 100 apparently healthy bees -- will kill colonies fairly
reliably, or if bees with a specific apparent problem have to be juiced.

If that turns out to be the case, then maybe we have something new and 
different -- and outside our conventional thinking.

I think that making any assumptions going in, and assuming the usual
suspects are involved is the very reason that so many line scientists
miss novel things that some less herd minded renegade later picks up on.

Basically, explaining the bee juice effect is a matter to be resolved by
experimental science, as difficult and time-consuming as it is, and not
speculation, as relatively quick and easy as guessing may be.

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