Jim wrote concerning whether CCD combs have been checked for the presence of 
N. ceranae spores:

> Yes, of course it has.

Citation?

> More to the point, from the beginning, both kinds of Nosema have
> consistently been found in colonies showing the common symptoms
> of CCD.

Yes, we know that - but we were discussing the specific issue of whether N. 
ceranae spores are found on combs, rather than in adult bees.

> Even the deeply flawed work leading to the 9/2007 paper in "Science"
> showed a consistent pattern - both kinds of Nosema together in the
> same hives correlate with a very high level of confidence to CCD.

Spores in bees, on combs - or both?

> http://bee-quick.com/reprints/dapaper.pdf

A brief look at this paper suggests that the Noseama was found in samples of 
bees, not on comb - or did I miss something?

> or, explained in plain English:
> http://bee-quick.com/reprints/reads.pdf

where we read:
"In this case, it means processing samples of bees and royal jelly."
"What The Paper Claims, In 44 Words
Let's start with the essential core of the summary "abstract" paragraph:
"The observation that irradiated combs from affected colonies can be 
repopulated with naive bees suggests that infection may contribute to CCD. 
...pathogens were screened for significance of association with CCD. One 
organism, Israeli acute paralysis virus of bees (IAPV), was strongly 
correlated with CCD." "

So nothing here about N. ceranae spores on combs.

> I have renamed that virus ILPV ("Ian Lipkin's Pet Virus") so that we
> will never forget how long we were delayed by attempts to take credit
> for finding what is now clearly the wrong virus.

Virus???  We were discussing N. ceranae!

> It is interesting to note that the two types of "comb
> decontamination" employed on CCD dead-out equipment with
> what Dave Hackenberg described as "success" were traditional
> ways to decontaminate Nosema infested combs:

"Comb from dead out colonies was either fumigated with acetic acid, 
irradiated, or left untreated before packages were introduced."


Is irradiation a 'traditional' treatment for nosema?  Whether it is, or not, 
I still come back to the point that none of this tells us whether anyone has 
checked for the presence of N. ceranae spores on comb!

Best wishes
Peter Edwards
beekeepers at stratford-upon-avon.freeserve.co.uk
www.stratford-upon-avon.freeserve.co.uk/

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