Mealworm question!

[Anyanka]

I've been trying to create a self-sustaining mealworm colony in a translucent box on top of my kitchen cupboard, much to the disgust of my daughters. My RSPB birdfeeding guide says that it should only take a couple of weeks or so before it's under way, but I'm sure it's been two or three months at least now! All the worms turned into beetles three or four weeks ago (possibly more, my sense of time being totally out of whack), but nothing else is happening. Is that normal or have I got a bunch of abstinents?

[dmclean2]

Hi Anyanka, and welcome to WAB,
My goodness you have taken something on there! I dont think I'd have the patience for to do that, Maybe if the blue tits and other small birds would get to the feeder first, instead of the starlings, then I might try it,
Duncan.

[Anyanka]

Yep, my birdtable is always cleaned out by the starlings as well - which wasn't the intention behind the mealworm deal, or any of the other lovingly prepared treats I put out. I got the mealworms to help me hand-feed the robin, but he actually took one from my hand, pecked it to pieces and then turned his beak up at it! I had more success with Robin by simply finding a normal earthworm.

But now that I've got my box of bugs I might as well carry on...

[Rob_D]

I bet your beetles have been at it like mad and laying eggs all over the place. The eggs are very small (2mm), and often stick to the sides of the container. You can see them with a magnifying glass. They hatch after 4-19 days (according to some) but the first worms are really hard to see with the naked eye. A few weeks and moults later, they're big enough to be seen abit more clearly. You can often see the bran moving more easily than you see the little worms though.

I think the speed of hatching/moulting might be quite temperature dependent, so if they've been cold, they might be taking longer. Also I suspect the adults will eat the eggs, so it's a good idea to clean the eggs out of the container and put them in another one to hatch out.

I get a few worms for the Hedgehog and robin, but not that many. And I have had constant battles trying (unsuccessfully) to stop the starlings getting them all first. I guess it's cheaper than buying live worms all the time, since they only eat scraps. But I'm finding it alot of effort for just a few worms, so maybe I am doing something wrong.

[DuncanE]

maybe you have a same sex colony. My dad has done this for a while, and something i want to start up in the back of my garage. From what I can remember there will be some that turn to beetles some dont, but keep them happy with oatmeal and carrots (not too much carrot at once though because it'll get too damp) and they will be happy. Also keep it clean cos you will get mites in there too.

Give it time and you should find worms comming through.

[Anyanka]

Thanks for the encouragement and advice! I'm interested in your dad's same-sex colony, Duncan, but it's probably a subject for a different kind of forum

I'll have another look for the eggs now that you've given me some idea what to look for, Rob (bearing in mind that I usually have to hold things at arm's length to see them clearly, as I'm JUST that age...), but if I can't see them then there's no chance of separating them from their cannibalistic parents!

[Elizabeth B]

My husband has been breeding mealworms for years, but he never separates out the eggs - and we still get plenty of worms to feed to the robins, bluetits and nuthatches. (I have a caged feeder, so only smaller birds can get them).

He reckons that the period between having beetles and getting mealworms (of the size described as standard by mail order companies) is about 3 months.

[JP]

I used to breed meal worms as well as many other prey items when i used to breed Tarantulas and other spiders, the best way i found was to use a deep plastic bin type container, like the ones you store dry dog food in, fill it two thirds full of bran, then add the mealworms then put slices of brown bread on the top and leave it some where warm and well ventalated, i wouldnt add too much vegetation as this causes excessive moisture which leads to mould and smells and an unhealthy colony. As the bread dries and gets eaten add more this also provides cover for the meal worms and beetles, i used to put egg boxing in so the beetles would congrigate under it so i could capture them for my scorpions, patience is key when starting off, but build it and they will come!

[Cheryl]

I've got one of those mealworm feeders that you can lower the domed cover to keep out bigger birds ........................ dosn't work Starlings are just too clever

[Rob_D]

Thanks for that Cheryl - I was going to try one of those but won't bother now.

I just got one of the wire globe feeders - Gardman "Squirrel-proof seed feeder. Not so good for live mealworms, but fine for dried ones.

The starlings could get through near the middle! But I have foiled them by adding some additional wire to narrow the middle gaps. Sparrows, robins, tits etc can still get in once they get the idea.

The starlings are looking well unhappy about it but after trying several types of feeder unsuccessfully I am well choughed

[DuncanE]

[quote=Anyanka;274913]Thanks for the encouragement and advice! I'm interested in your dad's same-sex colony, Duncan, but it's probably a subject for a different kind of forum

oh to be miss-quoted As far as I'm aware My dad's mealworms have never been a same sex colony.

anyway as the other posts have said, give it a few months and it'll probsbly get sustainable.

[Anyanka]

Thanks for all that advice and information. I'll try to be patient (not my strongest point). I'll also see if I can find some way of dispensing them to the smaller birds only!

P.S. Another one on the joy of misquoting - there's an ad above this thread for mealworms. It says "High protein food for human, animal sell only to wholesalers over 500kg" - I would have thought that is a rather small market, what with such whale-size wholesalers not getting around much.

[Rob_D]

Do you have any mealworms yet Anyanka? I guess they might still be too small for feeding to the birds

My attempts to keep starlings out of feeders continues - apparently they're willing to squeeze through gaps that even robins find tight.

[PeteTheBloke]

What's wrong with starlings? I think they're real characters. Avian Del-Boys.

[Rob_D]

Nothing wrong with starlings - love to watch them in the birdbath, but they scoff all the decent food very fast, and there are dozens round my garden for every robin/blue tit. Just trying to encourage some biodiversity!

[wilddawn]

Do squirrels eat meal worms? We have squirrels in our back garden that my daughter loves but they're greedy little beggers and take the food I put out for the robins and tits. We don't have a problem with starlings, maybe they don't like my cats?

Good luck with your worms Anyanka

[Anyanka]

Originally Posted by Rob_D

Do you have any mealworms yet Anyanka? I guess they might still be too small for feeding to the birds

I have to confess that I've just given up on them! Most of the beetles died, but no eggs or worms in sight. Besides, the box had somehow sprung a leak and was dripping bran all over the kitchen. Put that together with the fact that the robin turned his beak up at the proffered mealworm but will happily feed on bits of dogfood which is a lot easier to store and maintain...

[Astra]

Originally Posted by Anyanka

I have to confess that I've just given up on them! Put that together with the fact that the robin turned his beak up at the proffered mealworm .

Sorry to hear that you've given up, but I don't blame you. I tried a couple of years ago but found that 6 months was too long to wait for a handful of worms.
But don't forget that it's not just robins that like them, blackbirds and tits love them just as much if not more.
My birds manage to eat a kilo of worms in 10 days! Every morning the birds wait for their breakfast and swoop immediately I put the worms out.