Science Does not Explain Everything!

October 7, 2011

Judy pulling larvae to inspect!

I finally brought my frame and some honeybee samples to the University of Minnesota. Judy took a look at the frame itself, and started poking. She noticed some very dark capping. She opened the capping and we saw some brown/black unhealthy larvae (A sign of a brood disease: a virus ), and inside the cell some Varroa mites!

 

Bottom left: unhealthy, grey larva-- Upper right: healthy, pink/white larva

Pupa: Top, healthy Bottom, Unhealthy

The adult honeybees that I collected had deformed wings...could be a virus like Deformed Wing Virus (DWV)but...not necessary the virus transmitted by the  Varroa mites that we found. It is complicated and not well known. Scientists around the world are looking at  that "Soup of Viruses" that seems to afflict and kill our honey bees for what seems no reason. What is clear with our hive is that the population of bees had deceased dramatically in the last few weeks.

 This is our combined theory:
 A small group of honeybees may have swarmed but  we are not sure. The brood was affected  first  by a virus making the colony  weak as those potential bees were not viable, reducing the total population and leaving a smaller aging bee  population to care for the whole. This older honeybee population under tremendous pressure to save the now reduced and sick colony and the queen became weak and more susceptible to other diseases and viruses which are always present in nature. In addition, this weakened colony attracted  invaders and they could not fight due to their affliction. The result: They ALL died together in their hive.

Still strange and unexplained is the fact that healthy pupae in their cells were next to unhealthy pupae, only separated by a thin wall of wax.

Ben and I went back later on  to clean up the hive. It was a gruesome sight... no bees were alive, no humming sound. Only devastation.  On the bottom board we observed  2-3 inches thick of dead bees.  Very sad indeed.

While cleaning I kept thinking  that this colony was already weak and could not sustain such internal and external pressure; however our other 3 hives were doing just fine.  It reminded me of  the Spanish Influenza of 1918 which  did not affect everyone but kill many.  Has great as  Science is,  one cannot know the exact cause of death of our colony. We may be curious, we may extrapolate, and guess but not all is known in the honeybee world...yet.

Bottom board: full of dead bees 2-3 inch thick

Dead bees on frames