Mealworm farming

[DHinton]

cleanup.... is putting dermestid beetles/larvae in with a darkling beetle/mealworm colony, a good idea?

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

cleanup.... is putting dermestid beetles/larvae in with a darkling beetle/mealworm colony, a good idea?

If your aim is to rid the entire colony of every scrap of organic matter, living or dead, then yes!

Seriously, it would depend, in part, on the species of dermestid. I think the larvae of most dermestids would be pretty devastating to a Tenebrio mealworm colony.

 

[DHinton]

If your aim is to rid the entire colony of every scrap of organic matter, living or dead, then yes!

Seriously, it would depend, in part, on the species of dermestid. I think the larvae of most dermestids would be pretty devastating to a Tenebrio mealworm colony.

i've heard they use them to keep cricket cages clean. would they not be good for mealworms then?
i mean, instead of cleaning out all the beetle/worm corpses.

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

Quote: Yes, as I understand it, certain species are used for that. I'd be concerned that the largely non-ambulatory pupae and larvae approaching a molt would be at risk. I've always relied on the mealworms themselves to take care of that task.

I have to say, your mention of dermestids brought back creepy memories of a Mammalogy class I took once. It was held in an old WWII underground bunker in the swamps of Plaquemines Parish. In one cavernous, dark, dank room they used dermestid beetles to clear animal corpses to the bones. The thought of the odor of that room still makes me gag, just a little bit.

 

[kwol]

I have the three drawer system. I bought screen from Lowe's, the kind one would put in a window, but metal mesh. Cut out the bottom of the top drawer, leaving a "frame: around the edges as a shelf to glue the screen onto. Eggs, waste, tiny bits of substrate ( I use pellet laying mash) all fall through into the worm drawer. Works great but you do have to manually move the pupae and the beetles into the next drawer.

 

[MelissaTXRn]

I keep mine all in one container with carrots. Anyway, I have had them for a while now. I recently added more worms because I like feeding the hens a big cup full. Now everyday I have a bunch of dead worms. I don't know why they are dying.

 

[buttercup95]

Yeah I don't live near a lowes though. I'm going to try home depot which still isn't near me either but hopefully I'll have some luck there

 

[chrissyr]

Anyone heard of "mealworms being calcium depleting"? I read it on another site and not sure if it's true. I DID have some soft-shelled eggs a few times this summer and wondered if maybe it was true (despite having oyster shell out) . There may have been other causes but wondering if anyone else had an issue with this? How much mealworms are you all feeding your birds a day?

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

A while back someone brought this to my attention after they read it on that other site, so I checked it out. There weren't any actual references presented to demonstrate that it was the case and I was unable to find any evidence in the primary literature. Also, in the context from the other site, the concern was that most, if not all, the food delivered to the nestlings was composed of mealworms. You're not likely to feed enough to cause a problem there. If you're very concerned, put a cup or two of oyster shells in with your mealworm colony. The larvae consume it and significantly increase their calcium content. FWIW, I only feed out a handful or so a day, but I've never noticed a relationship between eating mealworms and soft egg shells.

 

[chrissyr]

A while back someone brought this to my attention after they read it on that other site, so I checked it out.  There weren't any actual references presented to demonstrate that it was the case and I was unable to find any evidence in the primary literature.  Also, in the context from the other site, the concern was that most, if not all, the food delivered to the nestlings was composed of mealworms.  You're not likely to feed enough to cause a problem there.  If you're very concerned, put a cup or two of oyster shells in with your mealworm colony.  The larvae consume it and significantly increase their calcium content.  FWIW, I only feed out a handful or so a day, but I've never noticed a relationship between eating mealworms and soft egg shells.

Thank you Gallo del Cielo that makes sense, I also didn't see any studies about it so wondered. I will add the Oyster she'll ASAP thank you again!