Mealworm farming

[Gallo del Cielo]

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Yeah, freaky huh?

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Probably not. The mold you had was most likely eating the substrate or the vegetables and not attacking the beetles. However, conditions that promote that kind of mold growth can also promote the kinds of fungi and other microbes that can infect the mealworms and beetles. Most people will only see very dark beetles because the high densities under which we raise them. If you raise them long enough, you'll experience population crashes and the first beetles you see afterwards are often tan or brown (if the crash wasn't caused by a microbe).

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Mine must be multiplying like crazy because they are eating a lot of food. Not that I mind but gosh, they really don't go more than 2 days and then I have to give more carrots and other veggies.
I like giving fruit but those darn gnats show up the instant I put some in. I love to offer rinds from cantaloup and watermelon but instead give it to the Guinea Pigs because they eat everything so quickly the gnats don't have a chance. The beetles are about that way with the carrots and broccoli though! And they have learned to love tomatoes!

 

[Terri O]

Saw this thread on top and then I went to check my MW colony...yeah--I dont look at them too often! Imagine my surprise when the container was totally squiggling with baby worms! WOW! There sure are a bunch of them in there. Now they are in two cottage cheese containers. I guess it is time to start feeding them to something besides my 3 button quail. My hens are going to be really glad to see me tomorrow....Terri O

 

[LibertyChick]

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I actually think there are more than one molts in one day. I would pick out all my beetles out of the pupa bucket at night and I would find a bunch of beetles the next morning, some are the lightest color, some are brown...don't remember if I got a black one out of the bucket that quick.

 

[LibertyChick]

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I'm going to experiment with my beetles. Tonight, I will find 5 white beetles and put them in a bucket all by themselves and see what they look like in the morning.

 

[Urban Chaos]

Just wanted to report that my experiment with raising meal worms in dirt (not oats/bran/etc) has been very successful. We get lots of moths around here, and having moth food was not an option. The dirt works just fine, I've hundreds of worms and beetles. My set up is a 20 gallon aquarium with dirt from the garden in the bottom. We add fruit/potato's every 2 days and have happy healthy mealworms.

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

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They'll most likely end up being black unless the density of your larvae is very low. It is the density that the larvae experience over their development which determines investment in immune defenses (and previous encounters with infectious agents).

 

[LibertyChick]

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They'll most likely end up being black unless the density of your larvae is very low. It is the density that the larvae experience over their development which determines investment in immune defenses (and previous encounters with infectious agents).

I'm not understanding what you mean with density of the larva.

I have a small bucket and I could only find 1 very light beetle and 2 light brown beetles...all the rest of them that I could see were black...it was late and I didn't feel like digging thru the substrate to find more. I put them in a small bucket with out a tablespoon of oatmeal, so it's not like they were buried under the oatmeal or anything.

This morning, the very light colored beetle is not a light brown and the other 2 brown beetles are a darker shade of brown. Will check this afternoon to see what color they are.

 

[Kassaundra]

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That is interesting, how long has your colony been living in the dirt? You don't put any grain / chicken feed in at all, only fruit and veggies?

 

[Vickir73]

Someone mentioned something about giving them wet newspaper (maybe CluckyJay?) How wet? I'm assuming not dripping? I think that sounds like it might work for my colony.