American Foul Brood (AFB)
Identifying American Foulbrood
Identifying American Foulbrood, a spore forming bacterial bacillus brood disease, is very important as it is highly contagious to bees. Please familiarize yourself to the hallmarks or signs of AFB and preventing a disease outbreak:
- Scattered brood
- darkened, greasy, and/or perforated cappings
- slimy, discolored cell contents that “rope- out” using a toothpick or match
- Foul, off, decayed smell
- older, desiccated frames will show a tough scale atbottom of the cell
Caused and spread by:
- Used equipment, especially with unknown history
- Bees robbing another hive that is infected
- feeding bees honey & pollen contaminated w/AFB
- Buying infected nucs, bees
*Apiary & Hive Inspection with a NYS Inspector
– a NY Bee Wellness video
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*A power point presentation on American Foulbrood:
Identifying American Foul Brood
Apiary & Hive Inspection with a NYS Inspector - a NY Bee Wellness video
AFB Holst Milk Test Randy Oliver NY Bee Wellness
Resources
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American Foul Brood Detection Treatment
By the Finger Lakes Beekeepers Club
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DIAGNOSING AND TREATING AMERICAN FOULBROOD IN HONEY BEE COLONIES- M. Milbrath PhD
23 page PDF available on page link
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American/European Foul Brood
By the Ontario Finger Lakes Beekeepers NY Bee Wellness team
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How to submit samples to Beltsville for lab diagnosis
This is very important to confirm diagnosis of ABF and to determine the level of antibiotic resistance a particular AFB strain may have.
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Pamphlet on American Foulbrood
PDF available for download
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NYS Apiary Inspection
Protocol for quarantine and hive burning for AFB