>A few weeks ago on this list I described symptoms that I thought might >be a strange looking American foulbrood. Larvae dying extended in >capped cells, melting down and forming scales that look just like >American foulbrood scale. In the mean time, USDA lab confirmed that my >samples are of European foulbrood. AFB scales are hard to remove without deforming the cell. They also have a distinctive bump where the tongue was, if the bees have not polished it off. They also take quite a while to form and do so in capped cells. EFB is found pretty well everywhere in North America, AFAIK, and historically has typically only expressed itself under some stress conditions like mal- nourishment. EFB outbreaks were quite uncommon when people routinely treated with OTC. EFB has been known to spread through an outfit and cause serious loss, although I have never seen that in my forty years of beekeeping or when inspecting. Apparently, EFB is comsidered a serious problem in Great Britain. On the other hand, the first indication I had of (what I think was) varroa-related collapse of all my hives last year, I first mistook for EFB. An EFB diagnosis from samples does not necessarily mean that EFB is more than an opportunistic participant in the event. What are your mite levels? What have they been recently? *********************************************** The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html Guidelines for posting to BEE-L can be found at: http://honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm