[1][2] 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.

[2] Shortly after emergence, G. mellonella females lay their eggs in the small cracks and crevices inside a beehive.

[3] Generally, eggs are laid in the early spring and the moth undergoes four to six generations annually.

[4] Intraspecific factors also affect life stages: cannibalism of instars in the process of moulting has been seen, though only in situations where food is scarce.

They feed on honey, pollen, cast off skin of honeybee larvae, and the midrib of the wax comb; cannibalism has also been observed in food shortages.

[5] Pupae start off as a brownish white, but gradually darken to a dark brown color just before adults are ready to emerge.

[5] The adults' wingspan is 30 to 41 mm.Meyrick describes it - Forewings brown, suffusedly irrorated with ashy-whitish, especially on costal half towards base, and sprinkled with black, dorsal area much mixed with whitish-ochreous or ferruginous; some tufts of raised scales on fold; first and second lines angulated, faint, towards dorsum marked with short blackish dashes on veins and small dorsal spots, first sometimes almost obsolete.

Larva pale dull grey; head and plate of 2 dark reddish-brown : in old honeycombs in beehives; 5-8.

The tunnels they create are lined with silk, which entangles and starves emerging bees, a phenomenon known as galleriasis.

[9][10] 1-2 eggs, laid by the adult Apanteles galleriae, were found on each larva, with only one successfully parasitizing the host and surviving throughout its life cycle.

[12] Both sexes are equipped with a sensitive tympanic hearing organ that allows the great wax worm to perceive high frequency sound.

[12][11] This likely resulted from selective pressure from insectivorous bats; being able to detect their echolocation would enable G. mellonella to avoid being eaten.

[11] Emitters that produced ultrasonic sounds at similar frequencies as echolocation prompted G. mellonella to tilt their head and then exhibit dropping, looping, and freezing behaviors, all of which are meant to evade predators.

[11] Notably, predator evading behaviors were not exhibited when G. mellonella was exposed to lower frequency ultrasounds of moderate intensity.

[12] This species of moth is a major parasite of the wild and cultivated honey bee, costing millions of dollars of damage each year.

[2][13] After eggs are laid in the hive, the larvae burrow through the honeycombs and cause massive destruction, in addition to trapping emergent bees.

Wax moth larvae are commonly raised and sold as food for captive reptiles and arthropods.

[14] G. mellonella causes massive economic losses in the honeybee cultivation industry; the Southern U.S. loses 4-5% of its profits per year due to this one pest.

[3] In order to prevent or manage infestations, cultivators are encouraged to maintain sanitary conditions for their bees, as it will keep the colony strong so they can keep G. mellonella out.

[15] The waxworms of the greater wax moth have been shown to be an excellent model organism for in vivo toxicology and pathogenicity testing, replacing the use of small mammals in such experiments.

Experiments with infected waxworms support the hypothesis that the bacterial stilbenoid 3,5-Dihydroxy-4-isopropyl-trans-stilbene has antibiotic properties that help minimize competition from other microorganisms and prevents the putrefaction of the insect cadaver infected by the entomopathogenic nematode Heterorhabditis, itself host for the Photorhabdus bacterium.

[19] Recent research by Dr. Federica Bertocchini[20] has shown that enzymes contained in the greater wax moth larvae’s saliva can oxidize and depolymerize polyethylene at room temperature and neutral pH within hours.

[19][21][22] Another closely related species of waxworm, Plodia interpunctella, has been the subject of research which isolated two strains of bacteria from its gut, Enterobacter asburiae and Bacillus species which have been demonstrated as capable of growing on and decomposing polyethylene plastic in a laboratory setting.