henward Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 with the recent shortage of mealworms, i am back at breeding mealworms, refining my technique to avoid mites. starting out with 2000 strong culture. i am going for a 50,000 to 100,000k strong always available mealworm culture eventually, approx taking 12 months to establish this. turning my current 2k to beetles first. new techniques 1) using metal foil bbq disposable pans, i have a reptile 7w heater underneath, temperature is minimum 25c, up to 30c. 2) keeping humidity below 70% to ensure mites dont onset 3) microwaving brand before intro, regardless of course even supermarkets. 1 - to dry it, 2, to kill anything 4) less 'moisture source' like carrots, dont keep it topped up, give them days where there is no moisture source, bran has residual moisture so that should be ok. 5) keep breeding beetle tray and hatching tray all heated to the same method above. hope this works:D any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barnacle Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 Can i please ask a stupid question? (ok maybe two seeing as that was one) What do meal worms get fed to normally? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted November 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 Can i please ask a stupid question? (ok maybe two seeing as that was one) What do meal worms get fed to normally? Bran and vege Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barnacle Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 Sorry you misunderstood, what eats them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted November 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 Sorry you misunderstood, what eats them? Haha i misread Fish reptiles I feed to my arowana. Good food for them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 Sorry you misunderstood, what eats them? Really VICIOUS oat plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 Haha i misread Fish reptiles I feed to my arowana. Good food for them What are you planning to cross to get these fish reptiles? :cofn: Barnacle, my natives live mealworms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 What are you planning to cross to get these fish reptiles? :cofn: Barnacle, my natives live mealworms. They live mealworms? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted November 15, 2012 Report Share Posted November 15, 2012 They live mealworms? :slfg: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucid Posted November 16, 2012 Report Share Posted November 16, 2012 :slfg: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
repto Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 I would suggest if you want to go dry as you say to avoid mite infestation,which may be a good thing?You should try and work out a mesh grill system in your lower trays to let the eggs and other debri fall through away from the adult beetles.If they are done hard on the moisture they eat eggs and young larvae.If you could separate the eggs and newly hatched young away from the adults you would hopefully get higher numbers of mealworms in your culture?I did this once by accident when I removed the beetles from a culture and must have fluked this coinciding with a mass laying of eggs as within a few weeks the old culture, minus the beetles was a seething mass of young worms.I know when I get lazy and neglect offering carrots/spuds to my cultures there is a corresponding lack of worms coming through?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 Have to agree with above. Keep the moisture up to the beetles or they eat the eggs. I think you need a reasonable depth of bran as well or they will eat the eggs. I have noticed that if I get slack on either then there is a big reduction in production. You also need to make provision for continued replenishment of beetles as they get old and die off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Posted January 4, 2013 Report Share Posted January 4, 2013 I use cardboard layered on top of the meal, and all the beetles accumulate here pupa are always in the bran and once the bran starts to move (eggs hatch) i separate the beetles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aotealotl Posted January 5, 2013 Report Share Posted January 5, 2013 question: do we have superworms here in NZ ? (like mealworms but bigger) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted January 5, 2013 Report Share Posted January 5, 2013 I think we probably do as someone got prosecuted for them I believe. Probably an unwanted organism. We also have the smaller ones as they come up on trademe now and again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted January 21, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2013 no need for sw, just feed mroe mealworms:d besides, in a colony of mealies, you get a handfull of HUGE mealworms, i reckon these can be selectively bred, i will try when i buy a house and have room! success by the way, heating aliminium bbq trays under neath wtih heat matts - in 3 weeks, my colony is 2mm to 10mm of mealworms! i left with only a few beetles laying, arrived 3 weeks later and the mealworms have hatched and well and truly established! heating it works well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dattofish Posted January 26, 2013 Report Share Posted January 26, 2013 how do you know when the beetals have laid eggs or breeding without destruring them to much? or is it alright to move it around? i have a set of plastic draws top is meaworms then when they go into pupa goes to the draw below then when they turn into beetles they go into the draw below that, so they all seprate for their stages.. theirs alot of beetles an some dead ones know they turn into beetles an die but just dont seem to see any worms in that container.. am i ment to seprate them once again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted January 26, 2013 Report Share Posted January 26, 2013 Best to move the beetles on every couple of weeks I think. Some people just have the whole lot together and that works too but if you move them on the mealies seem to be about the same size. I think the main think is to give them warmth and moisture by way of carrot, apple or spuds, otherwise they eat the eggs and the crysalis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dattofish Posted January 26, 2013 Report Share Posted January 26, 2013 so every couple weeks move the beetels onto the fourth draw? that draw has alot of beetels but no sign of mealworms or eggs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 If you seive the bran and use the stuff that goes through the seive (the rest for your locusts) and you start a new draw each few weeks you make life simple. When you see movement in the bran you put it all through the seive and you have worms only. You then have small, medium and large worms. Don't forget to have a setup to keep replacing your beetles or you will end up with them all dying at the same time. If you have a whole mix of different sized worms you put the worms only in a seive and the small ones will fall through. I use seives from the wharehouse which are actually for keepng the flies off cakes and the worms can't climb out because of the metal ring around the edge. It fits neetly over a bucket that I have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 First set of beetles i had i never once found an egg, so fed out the beetles next thing i knew all of the bran was riddled with young worms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 First set of beetles i had i never once found an egg, so fed out the beetles next thing i knew all of the bran was riddled with young worms. You're not going to find eggs unless you're looking through the dust with a microscope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 Not that small Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aotealotl Posted January 28, 2013 Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 I just found out that I have to learn a lot about breeding these worms - an effing mouse just did eat all my beetles over night... :an!gry :an!gry (I am so looking forward to Wednesday... ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted January 28, 2013 Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 I just found out that I have to learn a lot about breeding these worms - an effing mouse just did eat all my beetles over night... :an!gry :an!gry (I am so looking forward to Wednesday... ) Get your self a cat? :digH: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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