Perhaps you've seen deadouts before with piles of yellow-orange powder
(looks like curry powder) on the bottom board and sifting down the combs.
These critters are responsible:

http://www.sweettimeapiary.com/pics/pollen_bugs.jpg

I apologize for the photo- I'm not setup for taking pictures through a
microscope. It's about 50x magnification and shows the interior of a single
honey comb cell- you can see the cell outline.

These critters are really small. There were probably a hundred of them in
the cell, crawling around. They wouldn't stand a chance in a hive with bees
so I wouldn't consider them a threat at all. On the contrary, they seem to
be nature's way of making sure good protein doesn't go to waste.

Just curious- does anyone know anything about them?

George-

-- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l for rules, FAQ and  other info ---