Home▸Entomology & Insect Behaviour▸A Field Identification Guide to Common Bee Hive Pests

🔍 A Field Identification Guide to Common Bee Hive Pests

An interactive 3D hive-comb inspection showing how Varroa mites, small hive beetles and wax moth larvae differ in size, location and damage pattern.

Entomology & Insect Behaviour3DModerate60 FPS

An interactive 3D hive comb where you can switch between Varroa mites, small hive beetles and wax moth larvae to compare their true relative size, where each is actually found during an inspection, and the damage pattern each leaves behind.

🔬 What It Demonstrates

Each pest is rendered at a size and location consistent with real inspections: mites riding on bees' backs, beetles skittering into dark corners, and moth larvae tunnelling silk-lined galleries through comb.

🎮 How to Use

Pick a pest from the dropdown and drag the severity slider to see a light presence versus a heavy infestation. Toggle the bee colony and the millimetre ruler to compare true scale side by side.

💡 Did You Know?

Varroa mites are only about 1.5mm across — smaller than a sesame seed — which is exactly why so many beekeepers miss an early infestation until colony damage is already severe.

⚙ Under the hood

An interactive 3D hive-comb inspection showing how Varroa mites, small hive beetles and wax moth larvae differ in size, location and damage pattern.

beeshive-pestsvarroa mitessmall hive beetleswax mothinsect identificationhoneybee biologyThree.js

3D · Three.js / WebGL renderer · 60 FPS target · runs fully client-side, no install