> the smell of AFB is not something that can be ignored, so the larger number of female beekeepers assure a much higher self-diagnosis rate when all that needs to be disposed of is a single frame.

Odor or smell of American foulbrood is not a reliable diagnostic
tool because some cases of AFB have no discernible smell at all.
The odor of disease is distinctive, but is not a reliable indicator
because people's sensitivities to odors vary so widely, and the
odor may be strong or weak. However, it is better to rely on 
eyes to diagnose the disease. -- International Journal of Entomology 
Research. Volume 1; Issue 1; January 2016; Page No. 04-10

[note: as a state inspector, I found many cases where there were only a few infected cells and no detectable odor]

> We conducted two studies in order to investigate whether gender and trait disgust were associated with the detection and the affective evaluation of an odorant signaling spoilage (carbon disulfide). We observed that women, relative to men, had a clear advantage in recognizing the disgusting odorant, whereas the general olfactory function was comparable in both gender groups. -- Perception. 2017, Vol. 46(3–4) 475–483

[note: what this tells us is that women may show a higher average odor sensitivity to rank odor. But as with all averages, this obscures the fact that someone who has a trained olfactory sense will perform better than untrained individuals, irrespective of sex.]

Peter L Borst

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