Breeding meal worms

[dod_resq_ff]

For those of you that breed your own mealworms what do you keep them in and can you post any photos of your set up? Also what kind of "filler" do you use?

Thanks Kyle

 

[acpart]

I keep the beetles, larger mealworms and aliens separately in those medium sized plastic faunarium things that are about 12"x6"x6". The covers are ventilated which is good. I keep the tiny mealworms in the small cricket keeper plastic things which are about 6"x3" or so. Every month I sift the beetles out of their gutload (see below) onto a new bed of gutload and pour the old gutload with tiny mealworms into a cricket keeper. I keep an eye on them and as they grow I sift them into the large mealworm enclosure. For gutload I use Cody's gutload (www.progeckos.com) which results in large mealworms and large geckos. I don't have any pictures and don't use any kind of rack system, just whatever shelves are available, usually on the bottom of my shelf unit.

Aliza

 

[NickBoudin]

i keep all my beatles, larva, and pupa seperate. I use "Corn Flakes" cereal for beddin, i crush it up a bit, and i add calcium, and vits to the mix. I throw a couple slices of potatoe in every once and a while.

 

[rhino43grr]

i'm still waiting for pupae and beetles, but i just put in dry oatmeal, some leftover puffed rice, calcium, and reptivite. i've been using different things for moisture, carrot slices, banana, kiwi... i've got some pretty good sized mealies in there so hopefully the pupae and beetles won't be far off.

will the mealworms eat the pupae if i don't remove them or do they just go for the beetles?
i have a second container set up for the beetles when they show up so i could put the pupae in there if i need to and get a third container for beetles.

 

[moosassah]

I'm breeding on a very small scale since we only have 2 leos.

Housing: 1.5 gallon fish tank, no lid
Filler: combination of cricket feed & crushed fiber cereal/oatmeal
Moisture: carrot shavings, potato slivers

I pick through now & then to pull out the larger ones. I do not separate the beetles because I don't keep more than 6 at a time. The larger mealies are placed in a container in the fridge & pulled out periodically to warm up & feed.

Note: Some people have allergies to the mealie's shell so when you are sifting out the larger ones, do it outside or with a mask if you find yourself having reactions.

 

[moosassah]

i'm still waiting for pupae and beetles...will the mealworms eat the pupae if i don't remove them or do they just go for the beetles?

It seems when I place the mealie dish towards the warmer end of the tank I get pupae much faster. Don't know if there's any truth to this though.

I have not had issues with the pupae or beetles being eaten or eating the worms.

 

[rhino43grr]

so i stopped at the petstore again today just to kill some time while my fiance was at a doctor's appointment and the lady was saying you shouldn't feed mealworms as a staple because they'll mess up your gecko's liver or something... is this true or just a myth to make me buy crickets and superworms?
also i'm still searching for somewhere to buy waxworms or butterworms locally so i don't have to order a bunch and pay for shipping.

 

[Inlovewithherps]

There is a LOT of conflicting information out there about feeder insects. I use mealworms as a staple feeder for my gecko's.I leave a dish of mealworms w/calcium powder in the tanks all of the time and feed crickets/superworms/waxworms a couple of times a week. My gecko's have done wonderful on this diet but as long as you feed a varied diet I think that you should feed what you are comfortable with. Superworms and waxies are higher in fat and so I would stick with once or twice a week feeding them.
Here's a nutrition chart..
http://www.grubco.com/Nutritional_Information.cfm

 

[Leopardbreeder]

http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=9487

About half way down the page are my breeding facility's. I use my gutload which is for sale! PM me if interested! Special GF member prices!


And to tat mess up the liver thing: That has been a common with animals for years. The myth is that the mealworm will eat thought the stomach of the gecko. This is not true because geckos chew, but it can happen with fish because they swallow whole.

 

[rhino43grr]

no it wasn't about the mealie eating through, she said the shell of it makes it so the liver gets clogged up with urate and impacts them or something and she said supers were better because they don't have as much chitin...

 

[rhino43grr]

i got a pupa this afternoon!!! just one, but more should be coming soon i hope. that was pretty fast, i think it's been under a week since i put them in.

 

[Stitch]

no it wasn't about the mealie eating through, she said the shell of it makes it so the liver gets clogged up with urate and impacts them or something and she said supers were better because they don't have as much chitin...

Supers will fatten up a leo quicker because it has more "meat" to them when compared to meal worms. I use Mealies as my staple and I mix in some crix and supers to add variety. ALL of my babies are fed mealies for the first month or until they are large enough (for me to feel comfortable), then they are offered crix. Most local pet shops live and die by the urban myth.

 

[RaiQuee]

I used to seperate out my mealies by mealworm, alien and beetle. But then I started working 84ish hours a week and was like "Well, its every worm for himself!" and through all of them together. I put about 6 inches of this gutload ed made (he based it off mulitple gutloads ingredients) and they have been thriving ever since. In fact, I can't get them to stop. I want to start them over however, because they are quite old cultures...pushing the one year mark?

But if you want to have the -best- number of mealies possible then seperate.

 

[rhino43grr]

is it normal for the beetles to just lay on their backs for a few days after hatching? it seems like they're all either doing that or burrowing down into the gutload...

 

[Stitch]

The beatles will flip them selves over if they are on their back. If they haven't flipped themselves yet, then they are probably dead. It's normal for them to burrow.

 

[rhino43grr]

thanks, i put in some pieces of paper towel rolls and most of them are hiding under them now so i guess they're doing ok.