Waxworm (Galleria mellonella) head. This is the larva of the greater wax moth. It is a pest of bee hives, where it feeds on the wax and discarded cocoons. Two chemicals in its saliva are able to degrade the plastic polyethylene (PE) and could be used to make it more easily recyclable. Waxworms are also used a model organism for in vivo toxicology and pathogenicity tests.