Breeding Meal worms
- Thread starter hyposhawn
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cat_named_noodles
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I do. I have a small colony in a 15 quart sterilite container. Then I have a separate container for pupae/adults. It's really easy. Just put them in a container they can't crawl out of (most any plastic sterilite/rubbermaid tub will do- you want something shallower Than tall). Then put a 1-2" layer wheat bran (in the cereal isle of grocery stores) in the bottom. The bran serves as bedding and a food source. It only needs to be changed when it gets moldy smelling (every 3-4 weeksw, more or less). Put in a few hundred mealworms in it, give them water crystals/sweet potato once or twice a week (-I put my potato/crystals in a jar lid as not to spoil the bran-replace potato as it's eaten/gets moldy; replace crystals when they dry up). The mealworms go through about 5+ growth stages before the pupate. You can either remove the pupae to their own container, or leave them in there. Adults require the same living conditions. At room temperature it can take a few months to see the life cycle complete (egg to adult), usually 4-6 months. Keep them warmer (around 80+ degrees or so), and it could only take 3 months. Pet stores usually have meal worms that are ready to pupate (I just bought some and 3 already have in less than a week). I really like growing mealworms because I get all the different sizes I need for the variuosly-sized geckos I have. They don't require a photoperiod either. I keep mine in the closet with the water heater so they stay warm.
Don't feed heavily from the colony till you start having beetles.
This has worked great for me so far.
Oh and btw, there's a dedicated forum to food here.
hope this helps
Don't feed heavily from the colony till you start having beetles.
This has worked great for me so far.
Oh and btw, there's a dedicated forum to food here.
hope this helps
macksnowgecko
New member
in the food section i think its called a mod stickied me asking the sae ? and soomeone explained it very well
hope it helps it helped me
hope it helps it helped me
cat_named_noodles
New member
Like rglove said, yes. I actually keep them about 80-85 degrees. The point is to get beetles- they lay the eggs that turn into mealworms.
You want that to happen. I can post pics of my colony if you want.
cat_named_noodles
New member
had a feeling this would get moved lol
Ok,
here is my set-up. I have 2 inches of wheat bran in a 14 quart rubbermaid container. I have spinach leaves and carrot slices for food. I have some cotton material sprayed to make damp for water. Then I have a container for the pupate. I currently have 1 meal worm out of 250 clear so i think he might pupate.
here is my set-up. I have 2 inches of wheat bran in a 14 quart rubbermaid container. I have spinach leaves and carrot slices for food. I have some cotton material sprayed to make damp for water. Then I have a container for the pupate. I currently have 1 meal worm out of 250 clear so i think he might pupate.
cat_named_noodles
New member
Sounds good. I would check the cotton (is it on a lid of some sort so it doesn't get the bran wet?) regularly so it doesn't get moldy. I think spinach is good occasionally, but it has oxalates in it, which can hinder calcium absorbtion. I don't know if it affects leos that way, however, when fed mealworms that have been eating spinach. I would just rather be safe than sorry, you know?
Oh and the white mealworm has just shed/molted. They are white right after molting because their exoskeletons haven't hardened yet. It allows them to actually grow bigger. Mealworms turn darker right before pupating. If you have some that are near the 3/4" size, and they turn dark, they it won't be long before you have pupae. I currently have 16 pupae, and pick one or two out of the colony everyday.
Oh and the white mealworm has just shed/molted. They are white right after molting because their exoskeletons haven't hardened yet. It allows them to actually grow bigger. Mealworms turn darker right before pupating. If you have some that are near the 3/4" size, and they turn dark, they it won't be long before you have pupae. I currently have 16 pupae, and pick one or two out of the colony everyday.
cat_named_noodles
New member
if you want check out the pics of my colonies here: http://www.geckosunlimited.com/community/food-nutrition/39005-photos-my-feeders-colonies.html
cat_named_noodles
New member
Out of the container? I'm assuming in order to clean the container/if it gets moldy? I grab handfuls of it and sprinkle it into another container- then I grab the mealworms that fall through and put them into another container. So I have 3 (bran, mealies, and the original colony). With all the worms removed I throw out the old bran, replace it and add the worms. I imagine you could use some sort of sieve or colander to separate the worms and the bran- but I'm fine doing it the way I do (and I only do that maybe 1x a month). Oftentimes the smaller mealies congregate on the sweet potato/water crystals, and I remove them that way for my babies and L. williamsi trio.