Surfin Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 I've been breeding my own mealworms and the way the bran is seething I am going to end up with a serious quantity. Obviously I don't want any of this glut to be wasted so my plan is to put some in the fridge to slow them down, save some for breeding the next generation and the remainder to be frozen. Mealworms have a breeding cycle of 3 to 4 months. Idealy I'd like my frozen ones to last 3 months of feeding to my girlies . Incidentaly breeding mealworms is so easy with no smells or mess at all. I keep mine in an office 4 bay paper tray. Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 I'll be interested in the answer to this too, depending on how many meal worms I actually get Currently breeding them now, just at the stage where most of them are turning to pupae, so hopefully not too long now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Surfin Posted May 30, 2011 Author Share Posted May 30, 2011 Sorry to disapoint you Sam but mine have taken 6 weeks to 2 months to reach about 1cm in length from the pupae stage. I understand that if you warm them up it is quicker, not too hot though Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPalmer Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 How do you make your own???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Surfin Posted May 30, 2011 Author Share Posted May 30, 2011 How do you make your own???? Quite easy really. You need a plastic container about 10cm deep of reasonable size. By the way you don't need a lid as they can't climb at any stage of their lives. Add about 3cms of bran in bottom. Drop a few hundred mealworms on top of this. Cut up a carrot and dot around, this is where the critters get their water from. I feed mine a mixture of wild bird seed and garvo pellets ground up in a coffee grinder. Change the carrots frequently and do not wet the bran. After a while and some skin shedding they will pupate. I moved mine at this stage to another container. After 2 or 3 weeks a black flightless beetle will emerge, this is your breeding stock. I understand that a breeding female can produce 200 eggs at a time. feed the beetles exactly as you did the 'worms'. As I mentioned in my first post I keep mine in a Staples paper tray. The top drawer of which I cut out the bottom and fitted fine mesh to allow the baby larvae to crawl through into the empty bran tray below. This stops the adults snacking on them. Initially they are so small you can't see them, however if yuo run your finger through the bran you will see it move. I hope this has been of help to you. Feel free to ask any question if it is not fully clear to you. Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 There is an interesting page on raising mealworm Here It details how to 'freeze dry' them towards the bottom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPalmer Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 Thanks so much think I will try that once we move! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 Thanks for that CM, very helpful Surfin - have you found that your beetles spend more time on their back than they do on their feet? I turn them all onto their feet and literally 1 minute later they are all on their back again!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
