Some locals have lost their hives this past month.  After they lament their loss, they say, "Do you supposed I've got that CCD thing?"
   
  Personally, I suspect operator error and negligent mismanagement.  I often start by asking how the beekeepers treated the hives this fall.  The most common resonse is, "Well, I got busy..."
   
  Despite my ignorant assumptions trying to blindly assess and evaluate their hives over the phone, I'm not ready to blame everything on CCD.  But who really knows?  They're convinced they "must have got that CCD thing" because they treated (or failed to treat) their hives "just like last year."  
   
  I'm not so sure.  When I ask what their hives look like, and if they pulled out the frames to inspect the colony, or look for dead bees, the frequent answer is, "Nope.  The hive is dead.  I didn't need to open it."  Or minimally, they crack to brood boxes and note the dead bees between the frames.
   
  Perhaps someone with more time and education could draw up a simple check list of symptoms, one of those flow-charts with "yes" and "no" answers and arrows that say, "If yes, go on to #2."  It would have questions like, "Do you have dead bees on the bottom board?"  If yes, then you don't have CCD.  "Are your bees stuck in the comb head-first?"  If yes, then you probably lacked sufficient stores.  "Was your hive looking really healthy with patches of brood, and suddenly it was empty?"  If yes, move on to #4.
   
  Unfortunately, I don't know enough to ask all the questions that may pertain to symptoms of CCD other than the mysterious disappearance and the perplexing void in the hive.  I'm hoping someone would take up this idea and run with it.
   
  Grant
  Jackson, MO  

       
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