234 
THE STUDY OF INSECTS. 
Fig. zjg.—Galleria mello- 
nella. 
larva of this species is a well-known pest in apiaries. It 
feeds upon wax; and makes silk-lined galleries in the honey- 
comb, thus destroying it. When full grown the larva 
is about an inch in length. It lies hidden in its gallery dur¬ 
ing the day, and feeds only at night, when the tired-out bees 
are sleeping the sleep of the just. When ready to pupate 
the caterpillar spins a tough cocoon against the side of the 
hive. 
The moth has purplish-brown front wings, and brown or 
faded yellow hind wings. The fore wings of the male are 
deeply notched at the end, while those 
of the female (Fig. 279) are but slightly 
so. The female moth creeps into the 
hive at night to lay her eggs. 
This pest is found most often in weak 
colonies of bees, which it frequently 
destroys. The best preventive of its 
injuries is to keep the colonies of bees strong. Of course 
the moths and larvae should be destroyed whenever found. 
But the moths are slippery like other expert thieves, and 
run so rapidly when disturbed that it is very 
difficult to catch them. 
Family Crambid^e (Cram'bi-dae). 
The C/ose-wings. 
Although this is not a large family, there 
being only seventy-five species known in our 
fauna, the members of it are more often seen 
than any other Pyralids. The larvae of most 
of the species feed on grass; and the adults 
fly up before us whenever we walk through 
meadows or pastures. When at rest, the moths 
wrap their wings closely about the body; this 
has suggested the name Close-wings for the 
insects of this family. When one of these 
moths alights on a stalk of grass it quickly places its body 
Fig. 280 .— Cram 
bus. 
