What is this?

[Nock]

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Saw this in one of my hives. Wasn?t there couple weeks ago. Is that dysentery? 

[Donovan J]

Looks like it. Probably best to consult a veteran beek but that looks like dysentery to me.

[van from Arkansas]

Nock, does not look that bad to me, mild desentary.  When bees are clustered due to cold, they have to hold it, no bathroom breaks until warmer weather permits.  So in a cluster with thousands of bees in such close proximity and inability to relieve themselves, small amounts of dysentery are not alarming.  Nosema, one probable cause, appears to be always present in the bee gut.  For reasons described above, the Nosema spores accumulate under such conditions.

Now, if the outside or inside of hive was almost solid brown with splatter, then I would worry.  We have a fella here, The Honey Pump I consider to be an authority on Nosema.  The fella actually does spore counts with microscope and slides.  Hopefully, HP can chime in and shed more light on the subject.  There are other beeks on this forum that can offer there knowledge also, better than I.

For now, I don?t see any serious worries.

Enjoy the Holidays
Van

[BeeMaster2]

Same here. It might bee that your bees consider this area as not a part of the hive and relieved themselves.
Jim Altmiller

[Michael Bush]

Yes, it's dysentery.  Anytime bees are confined for any length of time they will get dysentery.

[Nock]

Thanks