??
>I have some hives coming down with a brood disease that looks close enough
>to AFB for me to second guess myself.

Hard to diagnosis long distance but will make a few comments which will
hopefully be helpful.

I can *usually *get a good idea by a smell test.

The test kits from Dadant work good.


 Normally AFB symptoms are
> obvious to me, so I have developed a habit of ignoring brood diseases
> without overt AFB roping and scales.

Interesting. Strange looking brood is what I look for most. .

  I have not found a single AFB case
> in my bees for the last 5 years (I have found it in other people's hives).

When I hear the above in outfits running quite a few bees I always am
interested in what treatments they are using to prevent active disease. If
you have not seen a single case in five years and have not used a preventive
treatment then I would say you are due for a AFB issue.



 At first I suspected parasitic mite syndrome virus infection,
> but the dead larvae are normally granular, not smooth, with that.

Despite what some researchers might tell you if you control mites then you
will rarely see PMS.
Have you checked the varroa load on the problem hives ?

> In this situation there are a few sunken perforated cappings, with light
> brown larvae inside melted and stretched (not coiled) on the bottom of the
> cell.

*when* you see sunken perforated cappings with dead larva one always has to
suspect AFB. EFB on the other han effects mostly the before capped stage.

PMS *in my opinion* can effect all stages , is spotty, *and* the brood does
not look like normal AFB or EFB *but* some brood will but I have never saw
PMS brood with the AFB smell.

*if* the subject hives had high mite loads I would suspect PMS. *If* the
hives (when tested now) have very low mite load then I would look to a
different reason for the brood issue.

 The larvae have a smooth non-granular consistency but seem
> very watery, and rope out less than 1 cm.

But they do rope?


 The hive does not have a
> single AFB scale on any comb, and I also checked all combs in the top box
> for most of the other hives in the yard and did not find any scales.

Perhaps a recent AFB issue as scale is a last stage and is not easy to
observe in a strong hives unless you have better eyes than I do which is 
very
possible!


> Has anyone ever done the milk test, and is coagulation what the
> instructions mean by "clear"?

Yes. No.

I consider the test not always reliable but have only used the test on rare
occasions.
I have a good sense of smell today (not always as my nose has been broken
more than a few times but I did have a surgeon remove the bone and scar
tissue so now I smell very well).
AFB has a distinct smell and the brown larva under those perforated cappings
*if AFB* should have the familiar AFB smell.

In Missouri my hives are busting with bees and super time is two weeks away
. I am getting calls from hobby beekeepers they are making the first checks
of their hives.

bob h.

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