156 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Bee Moth. 



Prof. C. E. Bessey, in the Progressive 

 Farmer, gives the following history and 

 description of this insect. The illustra- 

 tions are from Prof. Riley of Missouri. 



ITS HISTORY. 



The bee moth, or " moth miller," ( Oal- 

 leria cereana), is a native of the eastern 

 continent, having found its way to this 

 country probably with the earliest swarms 

 of bees which were brought from Europe. 

 It is mentioned by the ancients as one of 

 the pests of the apiary, and no doubt it 

 has existed as long as has the bee itself. 

 It is found, however, in greater abundance 

 in certain places than in others. Neigh- 

 bour, in "The Apiary," says that "it is not 

 so troublesome in England as it is in 

 America and some parts of Germany." 

 Huber, in his work on Bees, does not men- 

 tion the Moth, so it is fair to presume that 

 at that time it did not exist in that portion 

 of the continent, i. e. in Switzerland. All 

 American writers mention it, as well they 

 may, for scarcely in any portion of the 

 country are bees exempt from its ravages. 

 The venerable Quinby wrote in 1865, in 

 his "Bee-Keeping," as follows: "If we 

 combine into one phalanx ail the depre- 

 dators yet named, and compare their ability 

 for mischief, with that of the wax moth, 

 we shall find their powers of destruction 

 but feeble in comparison." Harris, in his 

 well-known treatise, calls it a pernicious 

 insect, and Langstroth notices it at length 

 in "The Honey Bee." 



EGGS. 



These they attempt to lay in the hive, 

 but if prevented from doing this, they 

 deposit them as near the opening as possi- 

 ble, so that the worms which hatch from 

 them may find but little difficulty in 

 effecting an entrance. Dr. Donhoff says ; 

 " The eggs of the bee moth are entirely 

 round, and very small, being only about 

 the eighth of a line, (i. e. one ninety-sixth 

 of an inch) in diameter."* In a short 

 time the eggs hatch into 



THE WORMS. 



These at first are minute, but as they 

 begin eating wax immediately, they soon 

 grow larger, and in about three weeks, 

 according to Harris, they attain their full 

 size {a in the figure). They are provided 

 with a silk gland, from which they spin 

 the material of their galleries, and as they 

 gnaw their way through the combs in 

 various directions, they always build up 

 their silken defeases. When of full size 

 they seek some sheltered place in the 

 hive, and spin their 



COCOONS. 



In this state they remain for two weeks, 

 and then change to the perfect or winged 

 form. 



It will thus be seen that more than one 

 brood may appear during the season, and 

 in fact it is generally spoken of as double 

 brooded, the first brood appearing in May 

 and the second in August, but as moths 

 are to be found at any time between these 

 two dates, it is more than likely that three 

 generations are frequently produced. 



a, the full-grown worm ; &. the cocoon ; c, the pupa, or chrysalis; (i, the 



female moth, with wings expanded; e, side view of the male 



moth, with wings at rest. 



THE MOTH OR WINGED INSECT. 



The insect which lays the eggs, is a 

 moth, or miller, of the family Pyralidm, 

 i. e. the snout moths. The female, ( d in 

 the figure, ) is of a grayish color, and with 

 a spread of wing of a little more than one 

 inch. The male {e) resembles his mate, 

 but is somewhat smaller. When at rest, 

 the wings are folded over the back, like 

 the sides of a house roof. 



The moths appear from early spring to 

 some time after mid-summer, and during 

 this time the females are engaged in lay- 

 ing their 



REMEDIES. 



The best protection a colony can have is 

 strength. Strong colonies that cover all 

 tlieir comb, are the best protection. Those 

 that are weak must be looked after, and 

 the comb examined. A queenless colony, 

 if allowed to remain so, becomes an easy 

 prey to the worms. Quinby says: " when- 

 ever our stocks have become reduced, 

 from over-swarming, or other causes, the 



*A personal examination of the eggs, made 

 with the micioscope, shows them to he oval, with 

 moasurments 1-48 inch long, 1-58 inch wide; color 

 white; surface minutely reticulated. 



