Anyone out there have any suggestions on how to do this? Axe had mentioned it before. We thought we could just buy them, but we're finding it becoming a neccesity now to try breeding. It's getting a bit expensive to feed the agamas as they eat so many at one time.
I am not sure but I think you will have to wait until they turn unto moths before you can start breeding. I had a load of mealworms and had forgotten about them and the next thing I knew they were moths. Try it and see.
If your mealies turned into moths you didn't have meal worms. Mealies turn into beetles when they reach adulthood. Breeding mealies is supposedly oe of the easiest things in the world to do. Just start off with a large enough colony of mealies (say around 250) so you can feed a bit and not exhaust you colony all at once. Place them in a suitable container and line the bottom with a bran/oat mixture. Toss in the occasional potato or carrot. When you see beetles begining to appear in your colony, it would be a good idea to remove them from the main colony and place them in a separate container. This is done to minimize the amount of eggs lost. If you need to replace the substrate in the beetle container retain the old stuff for about a week so as to not lose any eggs. Keep them at a warm temperature and you'll eventually see little mealies roaming about. These can be tossed back in with the other mealies. For a more simplistic set up just keep them all in one bin. Hope this helps solve your mealy problems.
Yup, breeding mealies is REAL easy. I'm actually hoping to get an article up on the site soon detailing how to do this, so I'll pop a note on this thread when I manage to get it up.
Maybe they were wax worms I had. It's late I can't help it . I have just found that site on breeding mealworms. maybe it will help. http://www.faunarescue.org.au/mealworms.html
I get most of my info from Yahoo.com So if that sie doesn't help you just look up others by typing in 'breeding mealworms' in the search box
Thanks for the answers. Just a couple more questions. What type of containers and how big for keeping the worms in? the beetles? Do we need a UTH or heat light or is room temp. (around 70-75 in the rep. room) okay? Do we keep the same substrate with the beetles as we use for the worms? and how often do we need to change it? Thanks again for the help!
This came off a website I found and should answer your other questions: 'To set up for breeding mealworms you can use a plastic container 35cm x24cmx6cm is a good size. Cut a square in the lid and cover with fly wire, something that can let air in but not the mealworms/beetles out. You will then need to use a medium to breed them in. As we are feeding different species but all insect eaters I breed mine in a medium of equal parts Bran & Wombaroo Insectivore Mix , mixed thoroughly together. this way the mealworms eat through the Insectivore Mix thus passing it on to the wildlife you are feeding the mealworms to. I then feed the mealworms strips of carrot. Do not put too much vegetable matter in as it can turn the medium mouldy. I give mine fresh food every couple of days. Remove any left over food. To keep your worms constantly breeding they need to be kept in a warm room or at a temperature of between 22-28 degrees. Cold temperatures will result in slow breeding. In winter it is a good idea to keep your mealworms in the main room of the house that has heating.' Hope this helps you
Should we be starting with the giant mealies or just regular ones? Ideally I think we would prefer smaller ones so we may be able to feed some to the anoles as well. Just not sure if they are two completely different types of meal worm... or just older compared to younger ones (giant mealies I mean)
By the way Nathan, I got that info off the site that Natasha recommended. It does help answer some of my questions, so thanks for providing the link and posting the info as well.
