Sealed Brood.

I am probably becoming a bit of a bee bore, but this is the time of the year when problems occur and need to be dealt with. From the early spring onwards, the mite population increases exponentially, whereas the bee population starts to drop after the peak of the summer; so, until the autumn treatment, the mite to bee population ratio increases which accounts for the viral diseases being experienced.

The blip shows some sealed brood; underneath the caps on the cells are pupating bee larvae. The bee that has photo-bombed me is healthy apart from the amputation of part of one of her antennae, although the damage will put her at a disadvantage, it should not be seriously disabling. You will notice a few irregularities in these cells:
First there are the white "lumps" known as chalk brood, the larvae have died and bacteria or fungi (which depends on which book you read, but bacteria are the current favourites) have been at work; it isn't normally a problem unless there is a lot of it. 
Then there are the caps that have had holes nibbled in them by the adults who, realising that there is something wrong, are preparing to remove the copses; the larvae could be sick or dead from any cause. The wire, that can be seen at the bottom of some of the cells, is just that, built in by the equipment supplier to make the comb robust.

There's a meeting on Sunday where there will be far better beekeepers than myself, I will be showing photographs and asking questions.