Another Honey Lover

This morning one of the more interesting moths in my moth trap was this male Bee Moth.

Male Bee Moth (Galleria mellonella)

The Bee Moth (Galleria mellonella) lays its eggs in beehives, and the larvae are considered pests. They do damage by injuring combs and honey. The moth Galleria mellonella belongs to the subfamily Galleriinae of the family Pyralidae, in which the females characteristically lay their eggs in beehives. The adult female moths have brownish front wings with wing-spans of about 1 in. (2.5 cm). Eggs are laid in masses in the crevices of the hive. The newly hatched larvae tunnel into the combs, they also puncture the wax caps of honey cells causing honey leakage and making the punctured comb honey unmarketable. Normally, the moths attack only abandoned beehives, or active ones in which the bee colony has been weakened, e.g., as a result of disease or starvation.