Chris asks:
> So are we seeing resistance arising in Nosema as it does with everything
> else that is hit with the same treatment time after time?

I believe that nosema ceranae is less effected by the current formula of 
fumagilin than nosema apis was. I have tried to find a viable bottle of the 
old fumidil for testing but all bottles found are way past the exporation 
date.

Bob Harrison opinion:
Nosema ceranae is tough to cure. Randy Oliver started  looking into nosema 
ceranae around the same time as i did. We agreed on some points but had to 
agree to disagree on others.

One of the points was I said from my observations the new nosema C. was a 
killer of bees and *the* main issue in CCD. I said so in my ABJ article last 
fall. Nosema C. was found in 100% of CCD samples.

Randy was not so sure and decided to run test yards. His articles are mainly 
from those test yards and try to answer why some bees can survive with high 
spore counts and others fail. As Randy and I discussed the issue I was 
puzzled myself as Nosema C. should be taking out whole yards and it wasn't 
in most cases in his test yards or mine.

I now believe the reason why is because of the very long time nosema C. has 
been in the country and in bee hives around the world undetected.  Randys 
article says at least from 1995 in the U.S. by going back and testing 
samples. Unpublished but documented testing now seems to place widespread 
nosema C. in the U.S. farther back (much farther back).

I believe nosema ceranae infestation in the U.S. is in most apiaries and due 
to the decades of being in the U.S. some bees have become nosema C. tolerant 
and can handle high spore counts. The bees we need to start using in our 
breeding programs.

I also believe that by many commercial  beeks using fumidil to control 
nosema apis for decades (which has effect on nosema C. ) the complete 
collapse of our U.S. bee industry has not been seen like in Spain when 
nosema C. wiped out most of the bee population.

It is my opinion based on my experiments with nosema C. that feeding as per 
label as a preventative fumagilin does help prevent widespread hive loss. 
However only in bees which are not heavily infested and bees in equipment 
which does not have a heavy spore load. reusing equipment with heavy nosema 
ceranae spore load quickly brings the problem back ( Bob harrison tests). 
However if seen early enough the effects can be reversed using a strong 
drench.

it is my opinion that higher amounts drenched on bees not taking feed will 
most times turn the bees around but recovery time is dependent on many 
factors some of which I do not fully understand and may never understand.  A 
point Randy was right on and I was wrong on in our talks last fall. My 
solution back then was to depopulate and sterilize equipment with acetic 
acid.

However both our positions had merit. Starting over with clean equipment is 
costly but a proven problem solver but drenching keeps you in business doing 
pollination and producing honey.

It is my opinion ( and possibly not Randy Oliver's and Eric Mussins) that 
when you see bees jumping into feeders with high spore counts ( starving 
because of the fungi in the midgut and not able to take feed) that those 
hives are not worth treating. Further research is needed.

I did turn a few dead bees in feeder hives around by removing the feeder and 
giving a clean feeder with fresh syrup( plus drench). I never checked the 
spore level in the feeder but some suspect the feeder could be spreading 
nosema spores. My friend Horace Bell and I had a long conversation on the 
subject last January and he even suspected that bees could pick up spores 
from a pond or water source. I had no opinion but certainly possible I would 
think. Could the nosema fungi stay viable in a water source or a hive 
feeder?

Randy does not address the bees dying in the feeder in his next article but 
because I use inside feeders I *always* see the symptom when the hive is 
drawing its last breath. Maybe Randy will comment. Of course *if* you use a 
top feeder and the bees have not got access to the syrup you will not see 
the dead bees in feeder symptom.

As far as I know only a handful of beeks and researchers are looking at 
nosema C. with prevention and control for the beekeeper.

The industry owes Randy a debt of gratitude for his nosema articles. I do 
not see how Randy gets his bee work done. I have a list of articles which 
need done or finished for both ABJ & BC but the beekeeping comes first and 
then the articles.

I wanted to completely retire from beekeeping. Actually because i was 
beginning to get bored. Then CCD came along and now I am not bored. Fighting 
to keep healthy bees. The whole industry has pulled together to try and get 
a healthy bee industry back.

As Randy pointed out in his article hives with high nosema ceranae spore 
counts produce half as much honey. A fact which brings every commercial 
beekeeper I speak with on board trying to control nosema ceranae.

Only the best commercial beeks are left now and those beeks react quickly to 
new problems which they have to to survive in a tough business.

Also I might add that a healthy hive has a tough time surviving the 
neonicotinoids but the neonicotinoids kill quickly a diseased and mite 
infested hive.

bob 

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