considerable proportion of healthy brood (c. 10%).
Given that a honey bee colony will normally have
healthier brood than diseased and that brood diseases
also removed a may not always be prevalent, such a cost could outweigh
the benefit and lead to natural selection against
hygienic behaviour. However, Seeley’s (1985) interpretation
of Rothenbuhler’s data must be taken with caution.
In particular, Rothenbuhler (1964a) recorded the
removal of healthy brood from cells adjacent to the
cells that had been experimentally contaminated with
P. larvae spores. It is possible that brood from these cells
were more likely to be removed due to their proximity.