- Mar 4, 2012
- 103
- 10
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I started a thread a couple weeks back asking if anyone had ever tried to raise mealworms on dried rabbit manure and apparently nobody had nor could I find any information on google about it. Mealworms do eat decaying vegetation in addition to grain products so figured why not try it.
Rabbit manure is about 20% protein opposed to wheat bran that is 15% protein. The only real question is if they will eat it and how the growth will compare to the bran.
Yesterday I set up 3 identical 41 quart bins.
1. Is pure wheat bran to use as a control.
2. Pure* rabbit manure that has been thorughly dried then heat sterilized and pulerized at least somewhat.
3. will be a 50-50 mix of manure and wheat bran.
In each tub I placed 200 mealworm pupae and once hatched they will all receive the same amount of carrots and apples as a water source.
* The raw manure contained some degree of BSF larvae which was killed and dried along with the manure. Most of the larger BSF larvae were driven off while the manure dried in the hot Florida sun but the smaller larvae refused to leave and were killed when the manure was heated to 200f. The BSF larvae will add some degree of protein to the manure mix but there was no way to easily prevent it and as that added protein cost me nothing so I see it only as a potential bonus.
Some may ask why don't you just feed the BSF larvae.....I can and do feed the BSF larvae to both my ducks and chickens but they can be tricky to raise and some containers are just too wet or for whatever reason not attractive to the BSF while other manure containers are loaded with them. The BSF are also not present during the colder months. I can raise the mealworms year round outside and are just so much easier than the BSF.
On a side note.....I use a timer and auto water system for the rabbits (16 cages). Timer comes on for 1 minute every 4 hours and fills the rabbits water bowls as well as the reservoir that gravity feeds the chicken water nipples. Have one rabbit growout cage that has its manure barrel pretty much under the water bowl and stays very wet. I have been using golf ball size lumps of that manure as a water source in some of the mealworm bins and they love it. It stays damp for days yet is not dripping wet and has caused no mold problems with the wheat bran. For the experiment I will stick to carrots and apples though for those 3 bins. Just thought I would mention it as it is a water source for them that does not involve having to buy carrots or apples. As the golf ball size lumps have the moisture removed from them by the mealworms they fall apart but it is impossible to tell if the manure is being consumed.
The 600 pupae
control
50/50 mix
Rabbit manure
Will update as the beetles hatch and start hopefully seeing mealworms in the manure containers.
Rabbit manure is about 20% protein opposed to wheat bran that is 15% protein. The only real question is if they will eat it and how the growth will compare to the bran.
Yesterday I set up 3 identical 41 quart bins.
1. Is pure wheat bran to use as a control.
2. Pure* rabbit manure that has been thorughly dried then heat sterilized and pulerized at least somewhat.
3. will be a 50-50 mix of manure and wheat bran.
In each tub I placed 200 mealworm pupae and once hatched they will all receive the same amount of carrots and apples as a water source.
* The raw manure contained some degree of BSF larvae which was killed and dried along with the manure. Most of the larger BSF larvae were driven off while the manure dried in the hot Florida sun but the smaller larvae refused to leave and were killed when the manure was heated to 200f. The BSF larvae will add some degree of protein to the manure mix but there was no way to easily prevent it and as that added protein cost me nothing so I see it only as a potential bonus.
Some may ask why don't you just feed the BSF larvae.....I can and do feed the BSF larvae to both my ducks and chickens but they can be tricky to raise and some containers are just too wet or for whatever reason not attractive to the BSF while other manure containers are loaded with them. The BSF are also not present during the colder months. I can raise the mealworms year round outside and are just so much easier than the BSF.
On a side note.....I use a timer and auto water system for the rabbits (16 cages). Timer comes on for 1 minute every 4 hours and fills the rabbits water bowls as well as the reservoir that gravity feeds the chicken water nipples. Have one rabbit growout cage that has its manure barrel pretty much under the water bowl and stays very wet. I have been using golf ball size lumps of that manure as a water source in some of the mealworm bins and they love it. It stays damp for days yet is not dripping wet and has caused no mold problems with the wheat bran. For the experiment I will stick to carrots and apples though for those 3 bins. Just thought I would mention it as it is a water source for them that does not involve having to buy carrots or apples. As the golf ball size lumps have the moisture removed from them by the mealworms they fall apart but it is impossible to tell if the manure is being consumed.
The 600 pupae
control
50/50 mix
Rabbit manure
Will update as the beetles hatch and start hopefully seeing mealworms in the manure containers.
I'm not sure sterilizing it is even needed. For the experiment though I figured I should as it does away with a variable and unknown. Mealworms live in such a dry environment not many other critters could survive it especially when you consider those hitch hikers came from a very wet manure environment.
