3.19 - Lab methods of diagnosis (Acarine, Nosema, Amoeba)

Question 2

How can you positively identify presence of acarine 6

Answer 2

1. Dissect bees to inspect the large prothoracic trachea
2. Pin bee legs upwards onto cork
3. Remove head and chitinous collar’ at the front of the thorax to expose prothoracic tracheae x40 magnification
4. Mites present: tracheae brown to black with patchy discolouration
5. Mites not present: tracheae creamy white
6. Inspect 30 bees for 95% confidence if just 10% of colony is affected

Question 3

Nosema lab diagnosis

Answer 3

• Collect about 30 bees
• kill them and grind their abdomens up in a mortar with a little water.
• Spread a drop of the liquid onto a microscope slide and put a cover on.
• Look for little pale rice-shaped grains - Nosema - spores under a light microscope at a magnification of 400x.
• N. apis spores are straight-sided, but N. ceranae spores are shaped more like slightly asymmetrical rugby balls.