Nosema

[SixFooter]

What is the recommended treatment these days?
I saw yellow stains over the front of a hive, so took a sample and checked for nosema under a microscope. The sample wass packed with nosema spores. Do I just have to hope for the best or are there any treatments I can buy that work? The colony has lots of food, so no point feeding yet.

 

[Black Comb]

Here is the NBU advice

https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/beebase/index.cfm?pageid= Do you know if it was Apis or ceranae?

 

[Polyanwood]

When the weather improves and lots of pollen is going in the forecast is good, I would do a shook swarm and then feed thymolated syrup which has been shown to reduce the rate of transmission.

I would also look around the hive to see if there are puddles that the bees have been pooing into as these will be infected with nosema spores and if permissible I would put some bleach in them.

... now that might be an unpopular answer, but if you can get them to the end of April they should be OK and then you can requeen

 

[Finman]

.
Nosema is a disease of autumn and winter. What have happened is happened in spring.

Nosema will disappear during spring and bees can make poo continuously.

I notice nosema in my hives so that bees are not able to eate pollen patty in spring.
When I put new emerging bees from big hives, the colony recovers and 2/3 of sick queens are able to lay normally.

 

[lebouche]

.
Nosema is a disease of autumn and winter. What have happened is happened in spring.

Nosema will disappear during spring and bees can make poo continuously.

I notice nosema in my hives so that bees are not able to eate pollen patty in spring.
When I put new emerging bees from big hives, the colony recovers and 2/3 of sick queens are able to lay normally.

But it's not spring till 21st March!

 

[Finman]

But it's not spring till 21st March!

Our spring is first of May. Then willows start blooming.

.

 

[moo]

Summer last year here in norn iron was a Thursday and Friday in late April.. then the long autumn set in
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[itma]

... are there any treatments I can buy that work?

It looks as though you might be asking for info on user experience with either Vitafeed Gold or with HiveAlive.

/ those being the commercial elixirs that I have seen advertised. Are there others worth mentioning? Are they better than thymolating the feed?

 

[Finman]

.

http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/agricultu...ases/bees/ag0300-nosema-disease-of-honey-bees


http://bees.msu.edu/2011/effects-of-nosema-on-honey-bee-behavior-and-physiology/

 

[itma]

.

http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/agricultu...ases/bees/ag0300-nosema-disease-of-honey-bees


http://bees.msu.edu/2011/effects-of-nosema-on-honey-bee-behavior-and-physiology/

Useful links describing the symptoms, etc.

Note that the first paper, being Australian needs the month names to be translated for the seasons!

In the US webpage, the photos for Figs 2 & 3 have been accidentally swapped around.

 

[RogueDrone]

I can vouch for Vitafeed gold if you can get the bees through to warmer weather. Mine from last year is now on of the strongest , tho' requeen as normal swarm control.

 

[Polyanwood]

I didn't find Vitafeed Gold worked on the colonies that tested highly positive for nosema.

I recall it was made of something like the leaves of sugar beet and I was puzzled about how it might work. I haven't tried the Hivealive.

 

[SixFooter]

It looks as though you might be asking for info on user experience with either Vitafeed Gold or with HiveAlive.

/ those being the commercial elixirs that I have seen advertised. Are there others worth mentioning? Are they better than thymolating the feed?

Well Kind of. I have heard varying reports about these treatments.

I may be panicking a bit and I have seen colonies recover from nosema. It's just that the infection looks very bad under the microscope. The spores were packed together over the whole of the sample with no gaps.

 

[Black Comb]

Nozevit is another option. Not sure how good it is.

 

[masterBK]

Be wary of "snake oils". Unless something has been tested under scientific conditions with proper controls by people with no axe to grind or commercial interest then you can't be assured of its efficacy. The main problem with Nosema is the spores on the combs and internal woodwork. The bees seem to recover once they are defaecating outside (which breaks the infection cycle temporarily) but the disease often breaks out again once the bees are confined by bad weather or winter. Bailey comb change is often the best way forward.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Be wary of "snake oils". Unless something has been tested under scientific conditions with proper controls

Like has been done with thymol versus fumidil.

Ceranae seems to persist throughout the season.

 

[Finman]

.
If you compare and select your hives, you will find that some hives stand better nosema than others.

.

 

[PBee]

Ceranae seems to persist throughout the season.

Method of transmission may be a contributing factor?

Young bees fed by older bees showed a 13-fold increase in mean infection level relative to young bees not fed by older bees (1-Screen Test 40.8%; 2-Screen Test 3.4%; Solo Control 2.8%). Although fecal-oral transmission is still possible in this experimental design, oral-oral infectivity could help explain the rapid spread of N. ceranae worldwide.

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0043319

 

[Easy Beesy]

Be wary of "snake oils". Unless something has been tested under scientific conditions with proper controls by people with no axe to grind or commercial interest then you can't be assured of its efficacy.

Not its effect on the colony, unless its been independently tested for its harmlessness too.

 

[Easy Beesy]

Bloody predictive text - 'nor it's effect on the colony'