CATDOLL : CATDOLL: Centipede breeding (how to breed centipedes)

When breeding centipedes artificially, you must try your best to create the living conditions they require according to their living habits. Here are the centipede breeding methods I have carefully compiled for you, let's take a look.

Methods of centipede breeding: 1. Accurately grasp the living habits of centipedes and create the best environment for centipede breeding

Centipedes mainly live in low mountain areas with more rocks and less soil, and only a small number of them are distributed in plains. After the Waking of Insects every year, the temperature warms up, and centipedes wake up from hibernation and begin to move out of the ground. They are good at living in damp weeds or rocky ditches. From Grain in Ear to Summer Solstice, as the temperature gradually rises, they gradually move to cool trenches, graveyards, ridges or cracks in earthen ridges to avoid the hot daytime. In late autumn, they mostly live under loose soil slopes that are sheltered from the wind and facing the sun, or in tree holes and tree roots where it is warmer. In short, centipedes like to live in dark, damp, warm and ventilated caves.

According to this habit, the living environment we create for centipedes must meet the requirements of darkness, moisture, warmth and ventilation. Our experience is:

Indoor centipede breeding ponds generally have a breeding unit of about 1m2. In each breeding unit, a square frame is built with tiles 20cm away from the escape-proof walls on all sides. One layer of tiles faces front side up, and the other layer faces back side up, alternating between front and back, so that the frame is about 30cm high. Specially configured breeding soil is filled inside, and a large number of small gaps are formed between the tiles. Centipedes enter the internal breeding soil through the gaps, dig holes in it as they please, and create their own little world.

An outdoor centipede breeding pond generally has a breeding unit of about 10m2. In each breeding unit, the stack is made of tiles 40cm away from the escape-proof walls on all sides. First, lay a 10cm thick layer of breeding soil on the ground, and then place a layer of tiles with the convex side facing up. Then, lay another 10cm thick layer of breeding soil on the tiles. Then, shrink the stack inward by about 10cm on all sides, and place a layer of tiles with the convex side facing up. Continue to lay a 10cm thick layer of breeding soil on the tiles until the stack rises to more than 60cm. The shape of the stack is a bit like a pyramid. Centipedes enter the stack through the gaps formed by tiles. In early spring and after the beginning of autumn, the temperature is relatively low. Under the sunlight during the day, the temperature under the tiles at the edge of the stack is relatively high, so the centipedes naturally move to the edge. Under the sunlight in summer, the temperature under the tiles at the edge of the stack is too high, so the centipedes naturally move to the inside of the stack to find a cool place. In winter, the temperature drops sharply, and the inside of the stack is warm and suitable because of the thick soil and tiles for insulation, making it an excellent place for centipedes to hibernate.

2. Accurately grasp the characteristics of centipede activities and choose the best time to feed

Centipedes usually come out at night, and their peak activity period is from 20:00 to 23:00. They are characterized by being more active at night and less active during the day; more active when the temperature is above 25℃, and less active at 10-15℃; more active at night after rain, and less active on rainy nights; more active on windless or breezy nights, and less active on windy nights (wind force above level 6). It can be seen that the frequency of centipede activity is closely related to meteorological factors such as temperature, air pressure, relative humidity, rainfall, and light intensity.

According to the above characteristics, the feeding of centipedes should follow certain rules, rather than being unchanging. The rules that must be followed are: generally feed at a fixed point before sunset so that centipedes can form conditioned reflexes and cultivate the regularity of eating. At the same time, they must not violate the laws of nature. On hot and humid nights after rain, centipedes are more active and have a better appetite. The amount of feed can be increased in time; in bad weather such as strong winds or rain, the amount of feed should be reduced or even not fed. In short, the impact of meteorological factors on centipede activity should be fully considered and feeding should be reasonable.

3. Reasonably control the breeding density and prevent centipedes from killing each other

If the centipedes live in too high a density or are disturbed too much, they are prone to killing each other and dying. However, under breeding conditions, with the improvement of living environment and breeding conditions, such as providing enough fresh feed and water, and not disturbing their lives, even if the breeding density is high, it will not have much impact on their lives. In particular, centipedes born from the same mother have lived together since childhood, and when they grow up, they will curl up together in dozens and live in harmony. Therefore, providing enough fresh feed and water and maintaining a quiet environment are necessary conditions for artificial breeding of centipedes. Unless it is necessary to cultivate seedlings, try to avoid mixing young centipedes produced in different breeding ponds.

4. Understand the dietary patterns of centipedes and scientifically prepare centipede feed

Wild centipedes are typical carnivorous insects with a ferocious nature. With their jaws and claws that can shoot venom, they can prey on various small animals that are much larger than themselves. The animal feed that centipedes like to eat includes: earthworms, woodlice, spiders, dragonflies, earthworms, mantises, locusts, crickets, oil gourds, mole crickets, cicadas, backworms, wasps, various fish, frogs, geckos, mutton, beef, rabbit meat, eggs, chicken, sparrow meat, snake meat, big-headed golden flies, centipedes, silkworm pupae, goat milk, cow milk, etc. In the case of insufficient supply of animal feed, they also eat plant feed. In order to reduce breeding costs and expand feed sources, Xiwang Medicinal Animal Breeding Farm attaches great importance to the development and utilization of plant-based feeds, and has developed several mixed feed formulas that are very popular with centipedes. The plant-based feeds used include: wheat flour, rice flour, millet flour, corn flour, sorghum flour, bran, rice bran, corn husks, black bean husks, bean cakes, peanut cakes, rapeseed cakes (detoxified in pits), cottonseed cakes (the dosage should not exceed 10%, and should be used after drug detoxification), locust leaf powder, soybean husks, etc.

Although centipedes have a wide variety of food sources, they require fresh food and do not eat rotten food. Therefore, in order to facilitate feed management and ensure the freshness and cleanliness of feed during artificial breeding, do not sprinkle feed directly into the centipede's activity area or habitat, so as to prevent the remaining feed from becoming moldy and causing the spread of fungal diseases. Feed and drinking water should be placed in a dedicated food tray or water tray. Food trays and water trays must be placed at regular times and locations, and the time and location of placement should not be changed arbitrarily. Generally, the food tray is delivered to the placement location before sunset in the afternoon, and taken out and cleaned the next morning for reuse.

Centipedes have a large appetite and are able to withstand hunger. When hungry, they can eat 1/5 to 3/5 of their body weight at a time. After eating their fill, they will not starve to death even if they are not given food for ten days or half a month. However, centipedes cannot withstand thirst and need to drink water every day. Therefore, water containers must be placed in the breeding farm and the water must be changed regularly to keep the drinking water fresh and clean.

5. Understand the centipede's egg-laying rules and create the best hatching environment

The centipede lays eggs in late spring and early summer. Each female centipede generally lays 20 to 60 eggs, most of which are 40 to 50, and a few are less than 10. Before laying eggs, the centipede's abdomen is close to the ground and digs shallow caves by itself. When laying eggs, the centipede's body is bent into an "S" shape, and the eggs are laid one by one in a string from the reproductive opening in the shallow cave dug by itself. In the absence of external disturbance, it takes 2 to 3 hours to lay eggs. After laying, the body is immediately turned sideways, and the eggs are gathered into a ball with the legs, and held in the "arms" for incubation. The eggs laid by the centipede are oval in shape, of different sizes, generally about 3 to 3.5 mm in diameter, beige, translucent, and the egg membrane is elastic.

Centipede eggs take a long time to hatch, usually 43 to 50 days. During the hatching process, the external shape and internal structure of the eggs gradually change as the embryo continues to develop. After one month, the eggs begin to take on the larval form, about 1.2 cm long, and the larvae can be seen crawling inside the egg membrane; after 35 to 40 days, the larvae are about 1.5 cm long and can crawl up and down, but cannot leave the mother's body; after 43 to 45 days, the larvae are about 2.5 cm long and can leave the mother's body to find food on their own.

During the incubation period, the mother does not eat, drink water, or move out of the nest. Therefore, during the entire incubation period, the humidity near the centipede should be kept relatively stable. Too much moisture or too dryness will affect the hatching of the centipede, and even cause the mother to eat eggs or young centipedes, affecting the hatching rate and larval survival rate. For farmers with little breeding experience, before the centipede makes a nest to lay eggs, you can put one or more pots of moisture-loving flowers and plants, such as spider plants, on the centipede breeding pile. Every time you water the flowers and plants, water will seep down through the flower pots. As long as the flowers and plants continue to thrive, the humidity of the pile will be basically stable. In this way, once the mother centipede finds a suitable place to make a nest on the pile, you must always keep the flowers and plants thriving. If you find that the leaves of the flowers and plants are shrinking, water them in time. If you find that the roots are rotten, it means that the humidity is too high and you must stop watering.

If centipedes are disturbed during egg laying or hatching, they will stop laying eggs and eat all the eggs that have been laid or are hatching. This is the so-called "protective" reaction of centipedes. After eating eggs, centipedes can usually lay and hatch eggs again. However, this will greatly delay the egg laying and hatching period of centipedes, and the number of eggs laid will be small, and the hatching rate will be low, which will affect the production and quality of centipedes. Therefore, when breeding centipedes artificially, during the egg laying and hatching period of centipedes, the surrounding environment should be kept quiet and they should not be disturbed. This is something that must be paid attention to in breeding management.

6. Molting and Growth and Development

Centipedes are arthropods belonging to the class of crustaceans. Their bodies are covered with a chitinous carapace, which restricts their further growth and development. In order to get rid of the restrictions imposed by the carapace on their further growth and development, they shed their skin several times during their growth and development. Each time they shed their skin, they grow significantly larger.

Molting usually takes place in midsummer or after laying eggs. Before molting, the body color changes, the movement becomes slow, the centipede stops eating, and the vision and antennae weaken. When molting, the centipede sheds its skin segment by segment from front to back, and finally the tail and legs are shed. The old skin shed is wrinkled, and when straightened, it becomes a complete centipede body. Molting takes about 2 hours to complete. Do not disturb the centipede during molting, otherwise it will prolong the molting time.

Artificially bred centipedes are easily attacked by groups of ants when they shed their skin. The following methods can be used to prevent ants. ① Once ants are found, fresh bones or fried dough sticks can be immediately thrown into the breeding pool to kill them. If there are too many ants, the centipedes can be immediately moved and then scalded to death with boiling water. ② Mix 25 grams of honey, 25 grams of borax, 25 grams of glycerin, and 250 grams of warm water, and place them around the breeding pool where ants often appear to kill them. ③ Scald the culture soil with boiling water and then expose it to the sun to kill the ants or ant eggs mixed in the culture soil.

7. Shorten hibernation time and increase breeding income

Centipedes are cold-blooded animals, and changes in external temperature have a great impact on their lives. In order to shorten the centipede breeding time and create better breeding benefits, measures such as heating and heat preservation are generally used to extend the centipede growth period, shorten or even cancel the hibernation time. Commonly used methods include constant temperature breeding and plastic greenhouse breeding.

1. Constant temperature breeding: Constant temperature breeding of centipedes is also called hibernation-free breeding, which means using artificial temperature control to break the hibernation habits of centipedes, so that they are in a good growth and development state all year round.

The most critical equipment for constant temperature breeding is a greenhouse with a certain area that can heat, control temperature and have good insulation conditions. These greenhouses can be newly built or renovated from existing ordinary houses or plastic greenhouses. Regardless of the type of greenhouse, it must meet the following four principles: first, it must be economical and practical; second, it must have heating and insulation conditions; third, it must be able to maintain good ventilation; and fourth, it must have a scientific and reasonable structure and be easy to manage.

2. Plastic greenhouse breeding: Make full use of sunlight to increase the temperature inside the plastic greenhouse during the day. Cover the plastic greenhouse with straw in the evening to keep it warm, minimize the temperature difference between day and night, significantly shorten or even cancel the centipede's hibernation period, extend the centipede's growth time, and improve breeding efficiency.

Since breeding in plastic greenhouses relies on sunlight, we must pay attention to weather changes: in case of rain or snow, take temporary heating measures in time to try to prevent centipedes from hibernating. If a centipede hibernates, do not wake it up easily. If the centipede hibernates repeatedly in a winter, it will cause great casualties; in spring, when the temperature rises, pay attention to timely ventilation, firstly to replenish fresh air, and secondly to prevent overheating in the greenhouse; in summer, it is necessary to promptly remove the plastic sheet and replace it with a sunshade sheet, or use a straw shirt for sunshade.

8. Natural enemies and disease control

1. Ant prevention and control: Ants are the biggest enemy of centipedes during the molting and hatching period. The following methods can be used to prevent and control ants:

① Once ants are found, fresh bones or fried dough sticks can be immediately thrown into the breeding pool to kill them. If there are too many ants, the centipedes should be moved immediately, and then the ants in the breeding pool should be killed with boiling water.

② Mix 25 grams of honey, 25 grams of borax, 25 grams of glycerin and 250 grams of warm water, and place them around the breeding pool where ants often appear to lure and kill them.

③Scald the culture soil with boiling water and then expose it to the sun to kill ants or ant eggs mixed in the culture soil.

2. Prevention and control of flour mites: If the humidity in the centipede breeding pond is too high and the temperature is high, centipedes are easily harmed by flour mites. After being parasitized by flour mites, not only will the centipedes be unable to move, but they will also be stimulated by the toxins produced by flour mites and cannot rest. More seriously, flour mites absorb a large amount of nutrients in the centipedes, causing them to become thin and die. The prevention and control methods are as follows:

① Do not add water to the breeding pond for one week to reduce the moisture content of the soil.

② Prepare the soil well and kill the powder mites in it by soaking it in hot water or exposing it to the sun.

③Put fresh bones or fried dough sticks into the breeding pond to kill powder mites. Remove them 2 to 3 times a day, and the effect is very good.

3. Prevention and treatment of indigestion: Strengthen feeding management, reduce the stimulation of adverse factors, and improve the digestive capacity of the digestive tract. In the low temperature season of early spring and late autumn, insulation should be done well, and the temperature in the pond should be kept at 25℃. If the centipede has already suffered from indigestion, the following two methods can be used to treat it:

① Dissolve 1 gram of yeast tablets in 100 ml of warm water and feed the patient once a day until recovery.

② Take 20 grams of hawthorn, 10 grams of sugar, and 250 grams of water, mix them and boil for 20 minutes, feed once a day until recovery.

4. Prevention and treatment of gastroenteritis: The prevention of this disease mainly involves strengthening management. During low temperatures, light bulbs should be hung in the pool to supplement the light. One 20W light bulb should be installed for every 10 square meters of the pool. Keep the feed fresh and the pool water clean, and take out the sick centipedes in the pool for isolation and treatment. When the disease is serious, the breeding pool should be disinfected with 3% formalin or 0.2% potassium permanganate aqueous solution. The following method is used to treat the infected centipedes: Take 2 penicillin tablets and 2 yeast tablets, grind them into powder, mix them evenly into 500 grams of feed, and feed them once a day until they recover.

5. Prevention and control of green muscardine disease: Strengthen management at ordinary times, frequently wash food dishes and sinks, improve ventilation conditions, and control the temperature of the breeding pool. Once a centipede infected with green muscardine disease is found, it should be quickly caught and raised separately. At the same time, all infected breeding soil should be removed and replaced with new breeding soil. The tiles in the pool should be cleaned with 3% formalin solution, and then put into the pool after drying to kill the green muscardine on the tiles. Spray and disinfect the surrounding area of ​​the breeding pool with 0.5% bleach solution to kill green muscardine, ensure the cleanliness of the environment, and prevent the spread of green muscardine spores and cause reinfection. Dissolve 0.25 grams of chloramphenicol in 150 ml of warm boiled water, and then let the centipede suck it once a day until it recovers. During the recovery period of the centipede, feed some active high-protein feed, such as mealworms, earthworms, etc., to improve the immunity of the centipede.

Characteristics of centipedes: 1. They like to live in groups: Centipedes have the habit of living together, big and small. Centipedes in the same group can live in harmony and rarely fight and kill each other. If the habitat is too small and there are too many centipedes, the old centipedes will automatically go away and find another habitat.

2. Centipedes are timid and easily frightened. If they are slightly frightened, they will stop eating, flee from their nests, or curl up motionless. Female centipedes that are laying eggs will immediately stop laying eggs, while centipedes that are incubating eggs will, contrary to their normal behavior, eat the eggs if frightened.

3. They like dark and humid places. Wild centipedes mostly live on hillsides, fields, roadsides, weedy places, or in firewood piles and gaps between roof tiles. They also often live in dark corners such as kitchen corners. Centipede footprints are also often seen under the bricks and tiles around pig pens and chicken coops.

4. They live in their nests during the day and come out at night. The peak of centipede activity is from 8 to 12 p.m., and they usually return to their nests to rest before 4 a.m. It is difficult to see centipedes after daybreak.

During the day, the centipede has poor eyesight and cannot see clearly things that are a little far away, so it is difficult for it to find food and defend against enemies. It only uses a pair of slender tentacles extending forward to explore the way, and at night it also uses its tentacles to search for prey for food.

5. Licking habits

Centipedes frequently lick their antennae and legs with the dense hairs on the protrusions of the first maxilla and the base of the maxilla, the brush-like bristles on the back of the second maxilla, and the saliva from their mouths. They also lick their own nests to keep them clean.

6. Temperature Centipedes are temperature-changing animals, and all their activities are often related to temperature. The most suitable temperature for centipedes to grow and develop is 25℃～32℃. When the temperature is 11℃～15℃, centipedes will reduce their foraging, stop mating and lay eggs. When the temperature drops below 10℃, centipedes will stop all activities, drill into the loose soil (or nest soil), curl up and hibernate. However, when the temperature rises to 33℃～35℃, all its activities will be suspended due to the loss of water in the body. If the temperature rises above 36℃, the body will lose too much water, causing the body to dry up and die.

7. Humidity: When the relative humidity of the air in the breeding room is 60%-70% and the humidity of the soil in the nest is 10%-20%, all the life activities of the centipede are most active. In other words, this is the most suitable humidity for the growth and development of the centipede.

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Centipede breeding method:

1. The breeding box is made of wooden boards, and its size is more suitable for 55 cm long, 45 cm wide and 30 cm high. A layer of non-toxic plastic film is pasted on the inner wall of the box, and the box mouth is equipped with a box cover with iron mesh.

After the box is made, it is placed in an appropriate location indoors. Multiple boxes can be arranged in a row, with multiple layers of tiles placed at the bottom of the box. The distance between the tiles is about 1.5 cm. Cement is used to pad the edges, usually 5 to 6 tiles in a stack. The gaps between the tiles can be used for centipedes to live.

Before putting the tiles into the box, they should be washed with water and absorb enough water to create a humid environment for centipedes. And a new batch of tiles should be replaced after a certain period of time to keep them moist and clean.

2. Ceramic tanks are usually used for tank breeding. Choose a ceramic tank with a diameter of 50-60 cm and a height of 80-100 cm. Place it in a suitable position indoors and put a layer of gravel or broken tiles at the bottom of the tank.

Cover it with a 30 cm thick layer of fertile garden soil, level it slightly, and stack tiles on the soil surface in a box-raising manner. The top layer of tiles should be about 20 cm away from the mouth of the jar, and cover the mouth of the jar with gauze to prevent centipedes from escaping.

3. Pond culture is to build a pond indoors or outdoors for breeding. The pond is made of brick and cement. The environment in the pond should be warm, cool, humid and quiet.

Generally, each indoor pool is about 2 square meters in size, rectangular in shape, 50 to 60 centimeters high, and the inner wall is smoothed with cement without any gaps, and lined with agricultural film, or a circle of 20-centimeter-wide glass is inlaid above the pool.

The bottom of the pond is not paved with cement. First, a layer of small soil blocks about 10 cm thick is laid, and then 5 to 6 layers of tiles are piled on top, leaving a 1.5 cm gap between the tiles for centipedes to live and lay eggs and hatch.

In areas with cold weather, you can dig a 50-60 cm deep pit on the inside of the pool wall at a certain distance from the wall. Pile stones, broken bricks and tiles in the pit to create gaps for centipedes to overwinter. Cover the pool mouth tightly with iron gauze or plastic gauze.