henward Posted November 6, 2011 Report Share Posted November 6, 2011 I have never tried it but got suggested this. I bought 1cm locusts and just in 2 weeks, they are almost adults, i expect all of them to be adults by mid week to end of week. I feed them 2 times a day, heat/light on 24/7. The growth is extremely fast!! will it affect fertility or will fertility be as fast as their growth? they should start mating by the weekend or next week at this rate..... any feedback? I had lots of them lay eggs in winter - hasnt hatched yet i know eggs can be dorman for up to 3 months, so i stll have another month or so to go but i just wanted to maek sure i have a supply this coming summer of hundreds of locusts. so these guys i will get to breed also. feedback welcome Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted November 6, 2011 Report Share Posted November 6, 2011 Fertility is related to heat not light. The light is used as a source of heat and the eggs will not be fertile or hatch if the heat is not over about 28 deg C. I run mine at about mid 30s and they hatch in 11 days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted November 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 6, 2011 ok i will try that, pump up the heat i had them hatch lower temps than that in the past though. weird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emaytiti Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 I had heat/light on 24/7 and my locusts couldn't cope with it and started dying. Might be because they were brought up with only 12 hours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 As I said. It is not about the light but about the heat. The bulb is a source of heat. What was the temperature? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emaytiti Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 As I said. It is not about the light but about the heat. The bulb is a source of heat. What was the temperature? Around 31 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MalcolmX Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 ive been running mine 24/7 for years now with no problems, adults, babies, all sizes. just make sure your temp doesnt go above about 38c for your eggs. also make sure they get some water, wet grass is good, because the 24 hour heat/light dries the air out heaps. the main affect this fast life seems to have is shortening it a bit. my adults live for about one month, compared to up to 6 months outside in the cold (where they could only feed for as little as one hour a week when the sun hit, in early winter) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason22 Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 I have always done 24hr light, mine take 4-5 weeks to get wings and 11-14 days to hatch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted November 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 yeah, short life is ok, when they hatch, i will taper off the lighting - i just need themt o lay asap so i can start feeding this summer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted November 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 10, 2011 Eureka! 1 maybe 2 clutches hatched! i believe i will hve a bit of a swarm soon yay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragonz1833 Posted November 10, 2011 Report Share Posted November 10, 2011 congrats i wish mine would do that to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason22 Posted November 10, 2011 Report Share Posted November 10, 2011 Mine Have stepped up the hatching in the last month thanks to fresh spring grass. thanks to my new shed i don't need to put the eggs in an incubator anymore the room stays at 30-33 degrees with nothing but 3 60w bulbs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted November 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2011 cool i have a 100w bulb on 24/7 in there right now, another batch hatched today. i can see the egg casings on the dirt, more and more by the day. so hopefully i will end up with several hundred. Dragonz/ just pump the heat up, make sure soil is moist but not wet, but getting soil initially wet is fine too and maintaining that moisture, in nature, it downpours and eggs get very wet. interesting too, after some reasearch, locusts fed on grass (assorted species) naturally contain aastaxanthin !! females with eggs have extra beta carotene! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
repto Posted November 11, 2011 Report Share Posted November 11, 2011 try propagating sand,moistened a bit and use removable see through coffee cups etc in a little cut out flush with the ground,remove ,cover with glapwrap and a rubberband.replace with fresh cups and sand on 3 day cycle .incubate and when they hatch put in the rearing tank and remove the cover or just rip a few holes in it.I found if the sizes were segregated they did better.Watch your breathing around them too,even wear a dust mask as they can give bad allergic reactions and make you crook.thats why I gave up doing them in the end was like having the flu fulltime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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