On Thu, 22 Feb 1996, Dave Green, Eastern Pollinator Newsletter wrote:
 
> ... varroa is easily diagnosed in a post mortem.  If it was the cause of
> death, the mites can likely be seen on the adults, and certainly on the
> brood.
 
There are usually many on the floor, too.
 
> The are pinhead sized, and
> shiny reddish brown.  You need a good eye and sunlight, but they can be
> easily spotted once you know what you are looking for.
 
They are flat and look like little tiny red/brown crabs with
eight tiny legs. Until you've seen them, they could be confused
with braula coecci, an almost certainly harmless red fly about
the same size but the latter are closer to spherical and have
six conspicuous legs.
 
Regards,
--
Gordon Scott   [log in to unmask]   Hampshire, England.
               [log in to unmask]
               Beekeeper; Kendo 3rd Dan; Sometime sailor.
The Basingstoke Beekeeper (newsletter) [log in to unmask]