Mealworm farming

[oneofseven]

pupa don't move much. They can squiggle but that's it.

Chickens can eat the rest. Make some kind of treat, using a bit of molassas and some egg; Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees and make oat bran cookies for the chickens. For fun roll them into marble sized balls and watch them chase the food.

 

[Life is Good!]

Question about deformed beetles -

Our mealie farm has been active, growing, wiggling, squirming, pupating since May. Cannot tell you which generation I'm on (might be 3rd or 4th by now). I'm a low-maintenance operation here - all one bin, been going great. Started with 400 worms, now have so many worms/pupae/beetles that I'm thinking of starting a 3-bin operation, just because of the sheer volume of worms in the bin!

My question is - some of my beetles are showing up with what appears to be deformed wing covers; some are completely missing, some are (apparently) chewed away, some are mis-formed.

Do you keep those beetles in with your bins or do you remove them (feed to chickens!) so only the 'proper' looking ones reproduce? Is this due to overcrowding in my bin or is this typical? I don't recall seeing this issue with earlier 'hatches'...thinking I've got too many worms in the bin at the moment. Some beetles you can actually see where a worm 'chewed' through the wing covers - while the young ones are drying? Don't know....so many mysteries - need to watch bin more, but am out with chickens instead!

Thanks for your help!

 

[Nifty-Chicken]

I just found out that a neighbor friend just got her son a gecko. They ran out of crickets so I suggested they take a few of my mealworms to try. Here's the result:

Rub-a-dub-dub. Thanks for the grub! The Ludlow's know how to make Lemon smile.

 

[jwcutt]

Quote:
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hpho...3205526981_1457146580_2641781_556727592_n.jpg

That is too funny

 

[Kassaundra]

Life is Good! :

Question about deformed beetles -

Our mealie farm has been active, growing, wiggling, squirming, pupating since May. Cannot tell you which generation I'm on (might be 3rd or 4th by now). I'm a low-maintenance operation here - all one bin, been going great. Started with 400 worms, now have so many worms/pupae/beetles that I'm thinking of starting a 3-bin operation, just because of the sheer volume of worms in the bin!

My question is - some of my beetles are showing up with what appears to be deformed wing covers; some are completely missing, some are (apparently) chewed away, some are mis-formed.

Do you keep those beetles in with your bins or do you remove them (feed to chickens!) so only the 'proper' looking ones reproduce? Is this due to overcrowding in my bin or is this typical? I don't recall seeing this issue with earlier 'hatches'...thinking I've got too many worms in the bin at the moment. Some beetles you can actually see where a worm 'chewed' through the wing covers - while the young ones are drying? Don't know....so many mysteries - need to watch bin more, but am out with chickens instead!

Thanks for your help!

I have had deformed beetles from the beginning, and my colony was not over crowded at all. I am not feeding them out yet b/c I started w/ so few <200 so I want to build my colony first. I too am growing them in a one bin method, I hope to increase to several bins (but still each colony being one bin method) anyway I plan to manage the deformed beetles by only removing those that are easy to remove, like when I scoop out the mealies I plan of feeding that day scoop a few deformed and feed them out, but I have no intention of picking through (hopefully) many many thousands of insects to remove deformed ones.​

 

[Kassaundra]

Quote:
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hpho...3205526981_1457146580_2641781_556727592_n.jpg

That lizard doesn't just look happy he looks plastered!

Are you sure you gave him a mealy and not a tequila worm?

 

[Kassaundra]

Actually the more I think about it the more that pic looks familiar. I have an old school pic of my brother that looks remarkably like that pic.

See for yourselves.

 

[Carin]

He's gonna hate you!!

 

[oneofseven]

Quote:

 

[Kassaundra]

Quote:
He's not on BYC, and I'm not telling!!!!!