Bald brood (uncapped pupae) can be an indicator of a colony's response
to varroa infested cells. However, there are many factors involved
behind this observation and there is no perfect one to one match
between an uncapped pupae and whether it is infested. At high varroa
infestations, varroa susceptible colonies will do some of this
uncapping. Because they tend to investigate, uncap and remove the
contents of infested cells slowly it is actually easier to observe this
behavior in the most susceptible and highly infested colonies. On the
other hand, colonies with high levels of varroa specific hygiene will
respond much more rapidly and effectively to infested cells. It is
therefore more difficult to catch them in the act, especially if the
colony has low infestation because of the hygienic behavior.
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