Breeding mealies is easy!

[lytlesnake]

Yeah most likely the black ones are dead. If they're crispy they're definitely dead. I put veggie slices throughout the container. Not so many that it's completely covering the substrate, but so that worms in different parts of the tub will all have veggies in their immediate area. Put the lid on for a bit, keep it open for a bit. This way they stay moist and silky smooth. If the worms feel dry and rough they definitely need some veggies. Geckos much prefer healthy, silky worms that don't smell bad. This is why you need to take out the old veggies and change the substrate every now and then.

 

[ssscales]

ahh ok so 50 50 with in and our of cold.. and give them a slice of carrot or potatoe so they dont die. All Black worms are dead?

If you choose to refrigerate them, I would keep them in the fridge 3-4 days and then take them out for 2-3 days to eat and drink and then place them back in the fridge for 3-4 days. Keeping them cold just stops them from growing and extends the period for them not to pupate. I would not even bother if you plan on starting your own breeding colony. Just place an order with any of the mealworm suppliers for more than you need and let them do their thing. Yes, all the black ones are dead.

 

[Freemankind]

Is it ok to feed the beetles to my leos if i start getting to many? I only have four geckos to feed, but on a student income breeding them sounds best. Only I don't need 1000's maybe a few hundred or so...

 

[ssscales]

Is it ok to feed the beetles to my leos if i start getting to many? I only have four geckos to feed, but on a student income breeding them sounds best. Only I don't need 1000's maybe a few hundred or so...

I don't think the Leos will eat the beetles, if you want to limit the number you produce just limit the number of beetles you keep. You can always either sell or give away your excess mealworms to other herpers or even sell to pet shops. You'll still end up with more than you need, but better than not having enough. We had 3 Leos and all of a sudden now have 15 mouths to feed, thankfully we have plenty of worms to go around.

 

[mynewturtle]

Thanks Gerry,

Superworms are very easy to breed. I breed crickets, mealies, and supers. All on a high scale. I'm amazed how fast your mealies are producing. Lately I think I've had more males then female beetles.

Superworms are pretty easy but there temperature requirment is bugging me. I like to keep all bugs on racks for spaceing reasons. My mealie and cricket rack is at 91F right now. I put a bin of superworm beetles up there and boom lost around two hundred. So I have to build them a hole difrent rack with no heat. uggh.

Congrats on how fast you've produced them. I wouldn't give them to anyone you may need them for hatchlings in the future.

 

[ssscales]

I hate crickets!...lol The only reason we even agreed to allow any Lizards in our home was the fact that they didn't need a staple diet of crickets and could be fed worms…lol Occasionally when we go to PetCo we may pick up 100-200 and gut load them for 1-2 days and offer them for variety ever month or so.

It's all about the temps, we have our worms on a shelf inside our reptile room with other supplies which is kept at about 82F. Every 3-4 weeks or so when we move the beetles, we find 100's-1000+ baby mealies under the substrate and gathering under the potato slices.

We're offering our baby Leos 5-8 small 1/4" worms each night and the adults always have a dish with some 1" mealworms and a few supers available, they love the supers. We're finally making a dent in the usage Vs production of the worms since we've been breeding them. Hopefully as more baby Leos hatch and feed it will balance out some.

 

[ALGeckos]

When I bred my own mealworms, it was easy! It actually did save me money, but not time (I didn't want the beetles to eat the baby worms or the worms eating the beetle pupae, so I literally spent hours moving different stages of the mealworm into various containers).

Now my geckos have a staple of crickets, so I buy the mealworms when I plan on feeding them.