Here are the instructions I give with the mealworm colonies I sell, it lists everything you need and how to care for a sucessful colony. The only different thing is that you'll have to get more mealworms to start your colony as I sell mine with beetles already hence why the quicker growth (because the colony has already been started for a couple of weeks) in the following info. When starting from mealworms and a smaller number of pupae or beetles it may take a few more weeks.
Your colony includes:
- Plastic container with vented lid
- Food/substrate (rolled oats, oat bran, gut load recipe, vitamins & calcium)
- Beetles & pupae (future beetles)
- Egg laying medium (cardboard, cork or other of the kind)
Mealworms are one of the easiest feeder insects to reproduce for you reptile nutritional needs. The only things you will need are fresh veggies. I have found that carrots do best, I buy a small bag of baby carrots (1-2$) a week and it’s more than enough.
Now that you have your colony at home, what you mainly have to check up on are the veggies. They need to be changed every 2 days. Leaving them longer could produce mould that could ruin your colony. This is what is most demanding! It only takes 1 or 2 minutes every 2 days.
To promote rapid growth of mealworms keep them in a warm area, preferably around 80-85°f.
In a matter of weeks (approx. 2 weeks) you will see baby mealworms appear, especially near the veggies. At this point they grow quite rapidly and you will have mealworms to feed your reptiles in 2 weeks.
Congratulations, you now have plenty of mealworms for your pets!
If you have a lot of mature mealworms (1”) and have too much for your immediate needs. Place them in a small plastic container with food substrate (simple rolled oats will do fine), make sure you make a few perforations in the lid for ventilation and add a small piece of veggie and leave in the fridge. The cold temperature greatly slows their rate of growth and you can take out the amount of mealworms necessary for your reptile’s meals a few hours beforehand, gut load them and feed.
To continue your mealworm colony successfully:
After your colony has produced mealworms, you may want to continue to produce more mealworms. This can be done in the same container but you will encounter some problems with this method: harder to clean, mealworms and beetles eating pupae, etc. It is best to get a second container ready.
Find a plastic container and lid of approximate same size at first (dollar stores have them for 2$). To make holes in the lid I used a nail held by pliers that was heated over the flame of a candle and melted into the lid. I tried perforating holes other ways and only ended up cracking the lid, just a hint
Fill the container with food substrate. You can only use rolled oats or oat bran but the more you put into the food the more nutrition ends up in your reptiles. Adding some gut load recipe (a cup or two) and vitamins and calcium (a teaspoon each) is a great way to add some nutrition for your reptiles.
Mix well and transfer remaining beetles from first colony to your new container. Don’t forget to add cardboard or cork for the beetles to lay eggs on and a piece or two of fresh veggies. You will eventually get some pupae from mealworms from your first colony that have matured, when you find these, add them to the second colony and it will soon be producing mealworms as well.
To clean your colony container: After your first colony has produced mealworms you will notice that the bottom of the container is lines with a grayish powder. This is the excrements of the mealworms and beetles. You will also find a lot of shed skins on the top of the substrate. To remove the skins, over the sink of other easily cleaned area, blow softly over the top and they will fly away.
To properly clean your colony of the excrements, you will have to wait a few weeks until the mealworms have all hatched and grown to a visible size, approximately 2-3 weeks. After blowing the skins off the top, pass the entire contents of the container through a fine kitchen strainer. And put back into the container. You will have kept the good substrate left and mealworms. Once the mealworms left have grown, this container will be ready to be the recipient of the beetles from the second.
Troubleshooting:
The only problem I’ve ever encountered in having mealworm colonies is mould. It may happen that when you come to change your pieces of veggies that you find them moldy and some of the surrounding substrate as well. There is no need to panic; you can still salvage your colony. Immediately remove the moldy piece of veggie and all affected substrate. Then make sure you have enough ventilation. This is often the main cause; the second is having too many veggies in your container. Adjust as necessary.
If you have any questions, feel free to PM me
Pixie
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