224 DISEASES AND ENEMIES OF BEES. 
but feeble in comparison. From the moth herself we 
would have nothing to fear, were it not for her progeny, 
a hundred, or a thousand, vile worms, the food of which 
is principally wax. 
As the instinct of the flesh-fly directs her to a putrid car- 
cass to deposit her eggs, that her offspring may have their 
proper food, so the bee-moth seeks the hive containing 
combs, where the natural food of her progeny is at hand. 
During the day, a rusty brown miller, with its wings close 
Fig. 89.—BEE MOTH. 
to the body, may be often seen lying perfectly motionless 
on the corner of a hive, or on the under edge of the top, 
where it projects over. They are more frequent at the cor- 
ners than anywhere else, one-third of their length project- 
ing beyond it, appearing much like a sliver on the edge of a 
board that is somewhat weather-beaten, (fig. 89). Their 
color so closely resembles that of old wood, that no doubt 
their enemies are often deceived, and they thus escape 
with their lives. As soon as darkness shuts out the view, 
and there is no danger of their movements being discov- 
ered, they throw off their inactivity, and commence 
searching for a place to deposit their eggs, and woe to the 
stock that has not bees sufficient to drive them from the 
comb. Although their larvee generally has a skin that 
