Christopher wrote asking about white winged bees and asking if it could be cloudy wing virus.
Gordon wrote
> I think `cloudy' is a good description.
May I suggest that Christopher collects some bees and sends them to an appropriate laboratory to have SEM work done to determine if it is actually cloudy wing virus (CWV). Whilst the field symptoms may look like CWV, there is only one way to be actually sure that it is CWV.
I can relate experiences in Australia where people saw something and thought it was Kashmir bee virus (KBV) and so thoughts then became facts. This is evident by all the stories floating around the world about KBV. It was not until laboratory examinations were done that a true diagnosis was available and it turned out there was no KBV.
So you could have the same situation. Unless you have a laboratory test, you cannot say it is CWV and you may go down the same path where people will now assume that Christopher has CWV when there is actually no proof.
It begs the question of when does opinion become fact?
Trevor Weatherhead
AUSTRALIA