Aaron Morris wrote:
>
> It's been a week or two since I posted about Braula (I typed Bracula) and
> I've been meaning to post an update, but haven't found the time.  Well,
> now's the time!
>
> >From the 1992 edition of _The_Hive_and_the_Honey_Bee_, pages 1133-1134:
>
> "One fly, the bee louse Braula coeca, is an worldwide ectoparasite of
> honey bees (Smith and Caron, 1984a).  The flies ride about on honey bees
> and take their food at the bee mouthparts.  The maggots tunnel beneath
> wax cappings to eat pollen and debris and may disfigure honey to be sold
> in the combs.  Although numbers of B. coeca may congregate on the queen
> (Fig. 23) in the fall, the greatest problem with this curious and
> generally harmless pest is it's being mistaken for a mite when spotted
> on bees (1984b)."
>
> Aaron Morris - I think, therefore I bee!
 
Aaron
 
        Do you know if this is the same mite which infests the Bumble Bee?  I have often seen bumble bees in
the spring with literally hundreds clinging to them.
 
Harry