CATDOLL : CATDOLL: Mealworm Farming Basics

Mealworm Farming Basics

Yellow mealworm, also known as mealworm, belongs to the order Coleoptera, family Pseudocephalexin, and genus Mealworm in insect taxonomy.

The main feed for mealworms is wheat bran, which can also be supplemented with bran (cornmeal is too fine and airtight to be used as mealworm feed). Vegetables are mainly cabbage, radish, cabbage and other leafy vegetables. These feeds can meet the needs of the insects for protein, vitamins, trace elements and water. In order to purify and rejuvenate the population and accelerate reproduction and growth, a small amount of glucose powder, fish meal, etc. can be added to the feed. Every 0.5 kg of mealworms can eat 1.5 kg of wheat bran and 3 kg of vegetables in one generation cycle.

1. You must have a breeding room to breed mealworms. The breeding room must be light-permeable and ventilated, and it must be heated and insulated in winter. The size of the breeding room depends on the number of mealworms to be bred. Generally, 300-500 trays can be raised in a room of 20 square meters.

2. The wooden tray for feeding mealworms is made of drawer-shaped wooden trays, which are generally rectangular, with specifications of 50 cm long, 40 cm wide and 8 cm high. The board thickness is 1.5 cm, and the bottom is nailed with fiberboard. The sieve tray is also rectangular, and it should be placed in the wooden tray. The specifications are 45 cm, 35 cm and 6 cm. The board thickness is 1.5 cm, and the bottom is nailed with 12-mesh iron sieve and three-ply board strips. The wood for making the feeding tray is preferably soft miscellaneous wood, and it has no peculiar smell. In order to prevent the worms from crawling out, plastic strips should be attached to the four frames of the feeding tray.

3. Place the wooden rack for feeding trays. Make wooden racks according to the feeding amount and the number of feeding trays. Use square wood to connect and fix the wooden racks to prevent them from tilting or falling. Then you can place the feeding trays on the racks in order.

4. The sieve plates and sieves can be made of iron sieves of different sizes. The 12-mesh large-hole sieve can screen insect eggs. The 30-mesh medium-hole sieve can screen insect feces. The 60-mesh small-hole sieve can screen 1-2 instar larvae.

5. The temperature inside the breeding room should be kept between 15-25 degrees Celsius in both winter and summer. If the temperature is below 10 degrees Celsius, the insects will not eat or grow. If the temperature is above 30 degrees Celsius, the insects will burn to death due to heat. The humidity should be kept between 60-70%, and the ground should not be too wet. Heating should be provided in winter. If no breeding is done in winter, the insects can overwinter naturally. Ventilation should be provided in summer. A thermometer and a hygrometer should be prepared indoors.

How are mealworms produced?

Morphological characteristics

The life cycle of mealworms (referring to a growth cycle) is divided into four stages: egg, larva, pupa and adult.

(1) Egg

Milky white, very small, about 1-2 mm long, 0.5 mm in diameter, oval. The egg has an eggshell outside, which is relatively thin and has a protective effect. The egg fluid is white milky mucus. The egg is divided into: eggshell, egg nucleus, yolk, and protoplasm.

(2) Larvae

Yellow and shiny, about 35 mm long, 3 mm wide, cylindrical. Thirteen segments. Yellow-brown rings at the joints. Light yellow on the ventral surface. Named after this. The head and thorax are relatively short, about 1/5 of the body. The body is straight, the skin is hard, and thicker in the middle. The last segment of the abdomen is smaller. The head suture is U-shaped, and the mouth is flat. The tail is pointed and curved upwards.

(3) Pupa

After the larvae grow to 50 days, they are about 2-3 cm long and begin to pupate. The pupa has a large head and a small tail. The head is basically the same shape, and the two legs (thin wings) are pressed down against the chest. The sides of the pupa are serrated and angular. The pupa is initially white and translucent, and the body is relatively soft, gradually turning brown and then hardening.

(4) Adult

After a week at a temperature above 25℃, the pupa molts into an adult. The adult is milky white when it just molts, and its carapace is very thin. After ten hours, it turns yellow-brown, dark brown, shiny, oval, about 14 mm long and 6 mm wide. The carapace becomes thick and hard, and it is fully mature. After mating and laying eggs, the second generation of reproduction begins. The insect body is divided into three parts: head, thorax, and abdomen. The head of the adult has one more pair of antennae than the head of the larva, and they are five times longer than the larvae. There are three pairs of legs, one pair grows on the front thorax, and two pairs grow on the abdomen. The length of the legs is 8 to 10 times longer than that of the larvae. Each foot has two claws and there are hairs on the toes. There are several vertical stripes on the wings on the back. Although the adult has a pair of beautiful wings, it can only fly short distances. The wings protect the body on the one hand and help it crawl on the other.

Edit this section Lifestyle

Mealworms are active by nature and are active both day and night. Generally, there are 3-4 generations with overlapping generations. There is no overwintering and they can still develop normally in winter. The suitable breeding temperature is 20-30℃. At 20-25℃, the egg stage is 7-8 days, the larval stage is 122 days, the pupal stage is 8 days, and it takes about 133 days for the egg to develop into an adult. At 28-30℃, the egg stage is 3-6 days, the larval stage is 100 days, the pupal stage is 6 days, and it only takes 110 days for the egg to develop into an adult. Humidity also has a great impact on its reproduction. The appropriate relative humidity is 60-70%. When the humidity is too high, reaching 90%, most of the larvae will die when they reach the 2nd or 3rd instar. When the humidity is below 50%, the yellow mealworms will grow to 2-3 years old.

The egg-laying amount is greatly reduced. The adult emergence rate is more than 90%, with a sex ratio of 1:1. They like to live in groups and prefer dim light. They move more vigorously after dusk. After emergence, they mate and lay eggs 3 days later. They lay eggs on the feed at night. Each female can lay more than 200 eggs, and dozens of them are often stuck together. The surface is sticky with food debris. The egg shell is thin and soft. The life span of females varies from 1 to 3 months. After half a month of laying eggs, the egg-laying amount decreases and they can be eliminated. The egg stage lasts for 1 week in July and August. The larvae have 1 to 10 instars and molt once every 4 to 6 days. After 60 to 80 days, they like to gather together and start feeding activities at temperatures above 13°C.