What kind bugs are these?

[drowe005]

Anyone know what these are?
They look really similar to mealworms, but Im pretty positive that theyre not.
They always appear in mass numbers underneath my cages and decompose everything from the woodchips I put down for odor control up to the poop. Is their excrament good to use for fertilizer? Any info would be appreciated.

 

[greymane]

They certainly do look like mealworms, but are you sure they are not common maggots?

 

[drowe005]

I dont think that theyre maggots either , but I may be wrong. They are about the size of a full size mealworm before they turn into beatles. The lighter in the picture is for a reference frame. They feel kinda soft, and they leave black stuff behind, not like the saw dust looking stuff that mealworms leave behind.

 

[jrobertson]

those are the larvae from a black soldier fly i believe. It kinda looks like a wasp but solid black with no ability to sting. They are under all of my cages as well. so, in a sense, they are maggots but not ordinary maggots.

 

[chickenzoo]

My freerange chickens and ducks spend hours under any pens so i don't get to see bugged. Your birds would have a smorgesboard........

 

[Mtn Laurel]

These little larvae are quite the hot topic now in composting and are excellent protein to feed to poultry and livestock. Lot's of info about them online and most people are trying to attract them. Lucky you, you've got a ready-made supply!

One article about them > http://www.microponics.net.au/?p=175

 

[Kikiriki]

I am raising earthworms so I've read all the literature on them that I can find. They found that earthworms sterilize pathogens from whatever they eat, so they are looking at ways to take advantage of that for waste disposal. Evidently, the pathogens can found only in the very beginning part of the worm gut, so something in the worms is killing all the bad stuff and their manure has only beneficial microbes.

I don't know if that is true for maggots/mealworms. Anyone done research on them?

I would want to know that before I fed them to my chickens if they are living in the chicken waste. I would collect half, give them a rinse, then put them into a container with vegetable matter for a couple of days before feeding to the chickens.

Using the larvae waste for fertilizer depends upon what you feed your animals: chicken feed is high in salts and thus their waste is generally considered too high in salts to be used fresh: it has to be rinsed to remove salts. The bugs may not be removing it...you could send a sample for analysis, or just do a test for yourself.. I love science experiments, so below is a description of how to do one like they have done for worm manure. They found with worm dirt that using too much is worse than not using any, so I did not include using a sample that has only your bug & chicken manure. If your aren't interested in doing it, you can just stop reading here!


Get a pack of vegetable seeds (something that grows well in your area for a late summer planting like a bush bean), eight empty and washed 2-liter bottles (cut off the bottom and don't use the cap), and eight washed pots. You can use big disposable cups or something if you don't have pots but be sure to create equal drainage holes in them. You don't want to have to transplant your plants, so use big enough containers for them.

Put plain soil in two, mix plain soil in ratios with the animal & bug manure for the rest 3:1, 1:1, 1:3 all in two pots each. (the double pots are to eliminate the possibility that something about a particular pot rather than the soil is a factor) plant three seeds in each pot. (this is to eliminate a problem with an individual seed being a factor). (you could add another plain soil pair of pots with a slow release fertilizer added for comparison, too). Keep them all together in a place where they get equal light, the same temperature and keep them equally moist. You want to keep them together, but isolated from each other, so use soda bottles with the bottom cut off to cover each pot. Number your pots so you know which is which, 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, etc. Make a chart and each day make measurements:

Is there any difference in the moisture in the pots? Just poke with your finger, and make visual observation unless you actually have a moisture meter.

Note when sprouts become visible in each pot.

Measure the size of the sprouts each day as they grow.

Note the appearace of health: scraggly or robust looking, good strong color or yellow or whitish

When sprouts get first true leaves cull the smaller two from each pot, and of course when plants outgrow the soda bottles take them away, but try to space the pots outs so the plants stay isolated from one another.

Watch for pest attacks and note them but do not treat any plants for pests

Watch for disease: wilt, fungus, etc

Note leafing and branching (size and quantity)

Note flowering (size and quantity)

Note fruit quantity and size

Honestly, I hope you do this and I would follow a thread thread with your results! I love science!!

 

[pheasantfrenzie]

I will buy some from you. I used to have some here but the rains have killed them or something. I haven't obseved any this year. They are great for the compost bins.

 

[ranit]

Rain???? Haven't seen any here in two months. Please send some my way.

 

[pheasantfrenzie]

Boy I would like to send some to you. We keep getting rain everyday with flashfloods. Sucks trying to keep anything or anyone dry at this point. But ya gotta love the rain it does do so much good.