Effect of optical radiation on greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella L.) – pest of bee colonies

Abstract

Wax moth is one of the main pests of bee colonies. Bee moth larvae have in their chemical composition many substances that are necessary for the preparation of drugs of the widest range of action. Beekeepers solve the problem of better control of greater wax moths using chemical, biological and other methods. The efficient methods to control Galleria mellonella include physical methods: temperature, radiation, etc. The purpose of this paper is to find the most effective optical radiation for a greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella L.), in which the productivity of bee colonies is maximally preserved, and unscathed G. mellonella larvae can be used to manufacture pharmaceutical preparations and biologically active supplements. The object of research is the Greater wax moth (eggs, larvae, pupae, and imago). We have developed a structure for determining the attractiveness of the optical radiation of different wavelengths for imago of greater wax moths. We found that the optical radiation in the wavelength range of 400…435 nm is the most attractive because it attracted a greater wax moths and therefore the number of eggs laid under the influence of this light was 1.5…2 times higher compared to radiation 491, 546 and 491 nm.