page_title: Galleria mellonella
section_title: Egg
hierarchical_section_title: Galleria mellonella / Life history / Egg
caption_attribution_description: Galleria mellonella dorsal view
context_page_description: Galleria mellonella, the greater wax moth or honeycomb moth, is a moth of the family Pyralidae. G. mellonella is found throughout the world. It is one of two species of wax moths, with the other being the lesser wax moth. G. mellonella eggs are laid in the spring, and they have four life stages. Males are able to generate ultrasonic sound pulses, which, along with pheromones, are used in mating. The larvae of G. mellonella are also often used as a model organism in research.
  The greater wax moth is well known for its parasitization of honeybees and their hives. Because of the economic loss caused by this species, several control methods including heat treatment and chemical fumigants such as carbon dioxide have been used.
context_section_description: Eggs are smooth and spherical in appearance, with a size ranging from 0.4 to 0.5 mm. Coloring ranges from pink to cream to white. They are laid in clusters in small cracks and crevices in the hive, and can take anytime from 7.2 to 21.8 days to hatch.
caption: Mounted, dorsal view
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