how to breed mealworms?

[leolover2]

How do i breed mealworms and what supplies do I need?

 

[Scott&Nikki]

My internet is going so slow right now for some reason, so I am having a hard time opening the searcch function. I know there are past posts that talk about it though.

 

[dragonflyreptiles]

just get several thousand mealworms and let them bettle out then sift the substrate about every 7 days (will have the eggs in it) and put the bettles on new substrate and you will have mealies in no time!

You an use gutload, red wheat bran or a well gound chicken feed for the substrate.

Keep them pretty warm, about 75 - 80 and they morph faster and breed better.

 

[leolover2]

what do i keep them in? also do i put the gutlod right in the sawdust?

 

[Scott&Nikki]

You shouldn't be using saw dust at all....

Your substrate is the gutload

 

[dragonflyreptiles]

Right the substrate should be gutload like Scott said, no sawdust of artifical materials.

 

[Sunrise Reptile]

Bran meal or fine ground oatmeal make good substrate for mealworms. You can then quarter apples and potato and lay them on top. Mealworms are one of the easiest feeder insects to self-produce.

 

[ZombieDharma]

Would it be feasible to breed mealies for just one gecko or is it generally done for for many?

 

[dragonflyreptiles]

depends on what you want really for 1 leo you can get 1,000 delivered a month from grubco for like $10.

Most people breed them when they have lots of leos but even then it is sometimes easier to spend $100 a month on mealies than to breed them, they make me all sneezy and itchy everytime I mess with them.

 

[eyelids]

I have to disagree about feeding apples to beetles. Several months ago I was out of potato and needed to give my beetle colony something for moisture, but all I had were apples. So I give them a few slices. Well a few days later I find around 100 dead beetles! What I believe killed them was the ethyl gas from the rotting apples. I didn't think to remove them after the beetles drank for a few hours because I leave the uneaten potato slices in with the beetles because they dry up and the beetles seem to like to hide under them rather than burrow in the substrate (Cody's Pro Gutload). If you must use apples either remove them after a few hours or use a container without a top.

 

[dragonflyreptiles]

I use apples, oranges, pears, peaches, potatoes, carrots and bananna's but I slice them paper thin so they are eaten within that day.