Frame Guide › Disease
Chilled Brood: what it looks like on the frame
You went through this hive on a windy 48°F day and took your time.
Dead brood in a band around the OUTSIDE of the patch while the centre is perfectly fine. That edge-first pattern is cold, not disease — it marks exactly how far the nurse bees could keep covering while the frames were out. Brood diseases don't respect the boundary of the cluster like that.
Close up and keep future inspections short and warm
The bees will clean out the dead brood themselves and the queen will refill it. The fix is your own habit: work above about 60°F, keep pulled frames out of the wind, and don't leave a brood nest open while you study one frame.
Easy to mistake for
- American Foulbrood Warning SignsSpotty brood, sunken greasy cappings with pinholes, and an odd smell.
- ChalkbroodCool, wet spring. You spot chalky white bits on the landing board.
- Laying WorkerA colony that's been loud and 'roary' for weeks. No calm hum.
Could you spot this with the lid off?
Read the Frame deals you 8 random frames. Say what you see, say what you'd do, and find out why. It's free and runs on your phone.
Drill disease → Mixed round (all 32 frames) →More disease
- ChalkbroodCool, wet spring. You spot chalky white bits on the landing board.
- American Foulbrood Warning SignsSpotty brood, sunken greasy cappings with pinholes, and an odd smell.
- European FoulbroodMay · built up fast, then stalled. A faint sour smell.
- SacbroodSpring · a handful of odd larvae scattered in otherwise decent brood.
- DysenteryLate February · brown streaks on the top bars and down the comb.
- Foulbrood ScaleA colony that dwindled and died last fall. You tilt a frame toward the light.
These frames are drawn to teach the pattern, and real frames vary. If you suspect foulbrood or a pesticide kill, contact your state apiarist. In Pennsylvania that's the PA Department of Agriculture apiary program. Samples to the USDA Beltsville Bee Lab are free. From The Alleman Apiary in Middletown, PA.