Tim Arheit wrote

> Austrialia's Disappearing Disorder for example is a brood disease, and the adult bees are fine 

It is not a disease as has been shown by the research and I usually refer to it as "muck".  I have written on this on Bee-L before but obviously it has not been understood.  It affects brood but is not transferable from hive to hive.  This has been shown when an affected frame is taken from one hive and put in another hive the new hive does not get the muck.  In my opinion, and I have had it in my hives, it is a heavy metal poisoning caused by the ability of the plant to absorb these heavy metals when the soil ph drops to very acid.  The bees collect it in the nectar and pollen and it affects their digestive ability.  It occurs on acid soils.  If a hive is showing symptoms, which are very similar to EFB, and you shift it onto better quality soil, then the symptoms disappear with a day or so.  If we get rain and the ph of the soil becomes not as acid then it again disappears.

Tim says it does not affect adult bees.  This is incorrect as you can have a thriving triple hive and within a few days it is down to a nuc size.  The adult bees disappear, hence that part of the name.  A hive can recover from the muck if shifted off the acid soil or it rains.  It normally occurs in spring from September to November, sometimes into December.

The only treatment is to not work the areas of acid soils in that time period.  Simple.

Trevor Weatherhead
AUSTRALIA
Had a look at www.apimondia2007.com 

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