Colony strength shapes the removal of greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella) eggs and larvae by honey bee workers and the spread of comb damage in Apis mellifera colonies
Abstract
The greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella, is a common pest of honey bee combs, and beekeepers usually meet its worst damage in weak colonies. Yet the path from colony strength to worker removal of the pest, and then to comb damage, has rarely been measured in one trial. We infested 24 Apis mellifera colonies (eight each with 10, 6 or 3 frames of bees) with wax moth eggs placed on open comb or in crevices, and with young (1st-2nd instar) and old (4th-5th instar) larvae. Eggs and larvae were counted from 2 to 72 h, and comb damage was followed for 21 days. Strong colonies removed 92.5% of young larvae within 24 h, against 74.8% in medium and 41.2% in weak colonies. Old larvae were removed less often at every strength level (strength F2,21 = 344.6; larval age F1,21 = 87.7; both P < 0.001). Removal followed first-order kinetics, and the rate constant fell from 0.240 to 0.089 h−1 as colonies weakened. Eggs hidden in crevices were poorly removed (36.5% versus 94.3% on open comb), and 52.8% of them hatched. By day 21, weak colonies carried 142.6 cm2 of damaged comb against 4.0 cm2 in strong ones, and their damage doubled every 5.5 days. Damage rose as a power function (exponent 1.56) of the share of young larvae left unremoved. Dark, brood-used combs gave 2.7 times higher larval survival than new comb. Keeping colonies strong, removing surplus unguarded combs and closing crevices should limit wax moth losses.
Keywords:
Apis mellifera, Galleria mellonella, colony strength, hygienic removal, comb damage, social immunity, beekeeping management
References
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21. Han B, Zhang L, Geng L, Jia H, Wang J, Ke L, et al. Greater wax moth control in apiaries can be improved by combining Bacillus thuringiensis and entrapments. Nat Commun. 2023;14:7073. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42946-4
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23. Marzouk WM, Kamel AA, Elsayh HAS, Dayem MRAE. Efficacy of plant oils against the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella (L). Indian J Entomol. 2025;88(1):53-58. https://doi.org/10.55446/IJE.2025.2608
24. Al-Zubaie A, Al-khazraji H. Effect of some Ajuga iva leaf extracts on certain biological aspects of the greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella L.). Iraqi J Agric Sci. 2026;57(3):991-1002. https://doi.org/10.36103/jybda104
25. Erez T, Bonda E, Kahanov P, Rueppell O, Wagoner K, Chejanovsky N, et al. Multiple benefits of breeding honey bees for hygienic behavior. J Invertebr Pathol. 2022;193:107788. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jip.2022.107788
2. Insolia L, Molinari R, Rogers SR, Williams GR, Chiaramonte F, Calovi M. Honey bee colony loss linked to parasites, pesticides and extreme weather across the United States. Sci Rep. 2022;12:20787. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-24946-4
3. Lin Z, Shen S, Wang K, Ji T. Biotic and abiotic stresses on honeybee health. Integr Zool. 2024;19(3):442-457. https://doi.org/10.1111/1749-4877.12752
4. El-Seedi HR, Ahmed HR, Abd El-Wahed AA, Saeed A, Algethami AF, Attia NF, et al. Bee stressors from an immunological perspective and strategies to improve bee health. Vet Sci. 2022;9(5):199. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci9050199
5. Nganso BT, Ayalew W, Wubie AJ, Assefa F, Belayhun L, Ndungu NN, et al. Honey bee colony losses and causes during the active beekeeping season 2022/2023 in nine Sub-Saharan African countries. PLoS One. 2025;20(5):e0322489. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0322489
6. Hosni EM, Al-Khalaf AA, Nasser MG, Abou-Shaara HF, Radwan MH. Modeling the potential global distribution of honeybee pest, Galleria mellonella under changing climate. Insects. 2022;13(5):484. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects13050484
7. Kaur M, Lovleen, Singh J. The prevalence of Galleria mellonella and Achoria grisella in Apis mellifera colonies in the Ludhiana district. Res J Biotechnol. 2023;18(2):97-103. https://doi.org/10.25303/1802rjbt970103
8. Al-ettaby MA, Khlaf RM. The spatial analysis and dispersal of the greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella L.) in apiaries of some central and southern Iraqi provinces. NTU J Agric Vet Sci. 2025;5(1). https://doi.org/10.56286/z2rk6121
9. Spivak M, Danka RG. Perspectives on hygienic behavior in Apis mellifera and other social insects. Apidologie. 2021;52(1):1-16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13592-020-00784-z
10. Snyder P, Martin J, Herman JJ, Franklin S, Wagoner KM, Soroker V, et al. The impact of honey bee (Apis mellifera) group size on hygienic behavior performance. Behav Ecol Sociobiol. 2024;78:52. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-024-03471-6
11. Naveen, Yadav AS, Kumar N. Seasonal incidence of ectoparasitic mites and greater wax moth in Apis mellifera L. colonies. Indian J Entomol. 2023;85(3):783-787. https://doi.org/10.55446/IJE.2021.145
12. Akinwande KL, Murele OO. Colony responses to co-infestation by small hive beetle (Aethina tumida M.) and greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella L.) in the tropics. J Resour Insects. 2026;1(2):100004. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jori.2025.100004
13. Guzman-Novoa E, Morfin N, Dainat B, Williams GR, van der Steen J, Correa-Benítez A, et al. Standard methods to estimate strength parameters, flight activity, comb construction, and fitness of Apis mellifera colonies 2.0. J Apic Res. 2025;64(2):533-554. https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2024.2329853
14. Pietrykowska-Tudruj E, Staniec B, Wojda I, Wagner GK. Insight into the larva of the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella as a model organism, with a pictorial key for identifying larval stages. Eur Zool J. 2025;92(1):337-360. https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2025.2457502
15. Mohindru B, Chhuneja PK. Differential expression of hygienic trait characteristics between hygienic and non-hygienic Apis mellifera Linnaeus colonies. J Entomol Res. 2023;47(1):195-199. https://doi.org/10.5958/0974-4576.2023.00034.8
16. Al-Kahtani SN, Taha EKA. A comparative assessment of hygienic behavior of Carniolan (Apis mellifera carnica Pollmann) and Yemeni (Apis mellifera jemenitica Ruttner) honeybees using infra-red photography video recording. Sustainability. 2022;14(19):12524. https://doi.org/10.3390/su141912524
17. Parepely SK, Kempraj V, Sanganahalli Dharanesh D, Krishnarao G, Pagadala Damodaram KJ. The greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella (L.) uses two different sensory modalities to evaluate the suitability of potential oviposition sites. Sci Rep. 2023;13:211. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26826-3
18. Wankhade LN, Kale PJ, Bidwai PA, Tandale PC. A study on the incidence and life cycle of greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella L in bee keeping unit of Karanja (Ghadge), Wardha, Maharashtra. J Entomol Zool Stud. 2025;13(2):133-137. https://doi.org/10.22271/j.ento.2025.v13.i2b.9487
19. Nearman A, Lamas ZS, Niño EL, Fine J, Mayack C, Seshadri A, et al. Metagenomic and gene expression patterns in declining commercial honey bee colonies. Sci Rep. 2026;16:11642. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-42605-w
20. Kumar V, Mall P, Pandey R. Impact of age of comb on greater wax moth Galleria mellonella L. Indian J Entomol. 2021;83(3):404-406. https://doi.org/10.5958/0974-8172.2020.00212.6
21. Han B, Zhang L, Geng L, Jia H, Wang J, Ke L, et al. Greater wax moth control in apiaries can be improved by combining Bacillus thuringiensis and entrapments. Nat Commun. 2023;14:7073. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42946-4
22. Laban GFA, Nofal MZ, Metwaly KH, Gad HA. Efficacy of freezing and gamma radiation for controlling of Galleria mellonella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). J Basic Appl Zool. 2025;86:55. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41936-025-00475-0
23. Marzouk WM, Kamel AA, Elsayh HAS, Dayem MRAE. Efficacy of plant oils against the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella (L). Indian J Entomol. 2025;88(1):53-58. https://doi.org/10.55446/IJE.2025.2608
24. Al-Zubaie A, Al-khazraji H. Effect of some Ajuga iva leaf extracts on certain biological aspects of the greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella L.). Iraqi J Agric Sci. 2026;57(3):991-1002. https://doi.org/10.36103/jybda104
25. Erez T, Bonda E, Kahanov P, Rueppell O, Wagoner K, Chejanovsky N, et al. Multiple benefits of breeding honey bees for hygienic behavior. J Invertebr Pathol. 2022;193:107788. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jip.2022.107788
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Ubaid, J. M. (2026). Colony strength shapes the removal of greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella) eggs and larvae by honey bee workers and the spread of comb damage in Apis mellifera colonies. Journal of Integral Sciences, 9(2), 83-92. https://doi.org/10.37022/jis.v9i2.157
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