CATDOLL : CATDOLL: What kind of environment do mealworms live in?

1. What kind of environment do mealworms live in?

Mealworms are also called yellow mealworms: (Relative humidity 60-70%) Living habits:

Mealworms are active by nature and are active both day and night. Generally, there are 3-4 generations, with overlapping generations, 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, and the pupal stage is 8 days. It takes about 133 days from egg to adult; at 28-30℃, the egg stage is 3-6 days, the larval stage is 100 days, and the pupal stage is 6 days. It only takes 110 days for eggs to develop into adults. Humidity also has a great impact on its reproduction. The relative humidity is suitable for 60-70%. When the humidity is too high to 90%, most of the larvae will die when they grow to 2-3 years old. When it is lower than 50%, the egg laying amount will be greatly reduced. The adult emergence rate is more than 90%, and the sex ratio is 1:1. They like to live in groups and like dark light. They are more active after dusk. After emergence, they mate and lay eggs after 3 days. They lay eggs on the feed at night. Each female can lay more than 200 eggs, often dozens of them stick together, with food debris on the surface. The egg shell is thin and soft. The life span of female insects varies from 1 to 3 months. After half a month of egg laying, the egg laying volume decreases and can be eliminated. The egg stage lasts for 1 week in July and August. The larvae have 1 to 10 instars, molting once every 4 to 6 days, and last for 60 to 80 days. They like to gather together and start feeding activities above 13°C.

2. Where do mealworms live?

Adults like to hide in dark corners or under leaves, weeds or other debris to avoid the sun.

The larvae live in the depth of 1 cm to 3 cm below the surface of grain, flour, and bran.

Mealworms are active by nature and are active both during the day and at 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 egg-laying amount is greatly reduced when the temperature rises. The adult emergence rate is more than 90%, with a sex ratio of 1:1. They like to live in groups and prefer dark 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. They live for 60 to 80 days. They like to gather together and start feeding activities at temperatures above 13°C.

A dry and rotten place

3. How to raise mealworms well How to raise mealworms well

1. Breeding environment: Mealworms are relatively small, and the larvae are only about 1-2 cm. In addition, the main products sold are larvae, so the environment is mainly modified for the larvae. The environment should be relatively dark, because mealworms do not like light. The indoor temperature needs to be higher, controlled above 20°. Too low will affect their growth. The ventilation does not need to be too strong, so as not to destroy the indoor temperature environment. The breeding place should be relatively quiet. When the sound is loud, the mealworms will be in a state of being stimulated. There should be no odor in the room. Mealworms are very sensitive to odors and are more harmful.

2. Build a breeding ground: Mealworm breeding does not take up space. It is usually bred in wooden boxes. The size of the box is about 80*40*12. It can also be bred in paper boxes. After preparing the box, build a suitable shelf according to the size of the box. The shelf should be sturdy and the height should be based on your needs. Then put the box on the shelf. The box should be easy to take out because it will be moved frequently during breeding and management. The inner wall of the box needs to be smooth, and at least 6-8 cm of space should be left, so that the mealworms will not easily run out.

3. Larvae placement: When the pre-stage is ready, the larvae should be placed. Before placing the larvae, you need to place some bran at the bottom of the box, with a thickness of about 1-2 cm, and put the newly hatched mealworm larvae into it and stir. The number is about 8,000-10,000. They must be separated evenly to prevent the larvae from piling up together and being detrimental to their growth. In the later stage, it is necessary to decide whether to reduce the number of mealworms in a single box according to the situation. When the larvae are 1-2 cm, the best living conditions are to maintain a box of mealworms weighing about 3 kilograms.

4. Feeding: The mainstream food for feeding mealworms is wheat bran, which is then mixed with some other items for breeding. Wheat bran should be used to separate the mealworms in the box and mixed evenly. The thickness of the wheat bran should be more than 2 cm. In order to maintain its sufficient nutrition, some cornmeal, bean cake and the like can be added in the middle to stir. The ratio is about 7: corn: 2: bean cake: 1. Except for the unchanged proportion of wheat bran, other items and ratios can be appropriately replaced. In order to meet the moisture and nutritional requirements of mealworms, vegetable leaves are also a daily necessity. Crush the leaves and then spread them evenly in the box, following the principle of small amounts and frequent feeding.