# Refining Morio Worm Breeding



## KarlW (Oct 6, 2009)

Hi everyone,

Now ive got my locust breeding sorted, and ive got hatchlings and am not losing aload to mould, its time for me to work on my Morio worm.

So far, ive managed to get them seperated, into Pupae, and now into beetles, but was wondering if anyone had any great tips for when they are beetles? 

Any way to make them lay more eggs? Any specific medium/substrate for them?

Also, do you tend to leave the eggs in with the beetles (as ive been doing) or seperate them out?


And one final thing, ive just cheaped out my bosc, and found 2 Morio beetles and 2 pupaes :2thumb: but the 2 beetles are jet black, whereas the rest ive ever had are a brown colour - im guessing its just been where theyve adapted to the dark substrate my bosc is on?


Thanks

Karl


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## KarlW (Oct 6, 2009)

Nobody?

Also, does anyone have any images of the eggs? And know ow long they take to hatch? (ive never timed it before).

thanks

Karl


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## mrhoyo (Mar 29, 2007)

Blaptica suggested moist wood chips or coco fibre as a substrate.

The beetles are always black for me.

You want to remove beetles after a couple of weeks to stop them eating the eggs or larvae and stop the larvae attacking the beetles. Try removing larvae to reduce the risk of them eating eggs or younger larvae.


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## KarlW (Oct 6, 2009)

mrhoyo said:


> Blaptica suggested moist wood chips or coco fibre as a substrate.
> 
> The beetles are always black for me.
> 
> ...


 
How long do you find the eggs take to turn into larvae?

And do you have any pictures/description of the eggs, as i cant seem to see any (although it could be my eyes:bash


Karl


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## Catfud (Mar 2, 2010)

I started to breed these for the first time last year. I now have a bunch of adults that I'm looking to start the second generation.

I used cheap oats as substrate (quite dusty) I didn't seperate the beetles either they stayed in the tub breeding and laying eggs until they passed which took about 6 months. I had a small flower pot water dish which I filled with water gel crystals. The beetles used this for hydration and left the eggs/babies alone. The beetles had a toilet roll tube cut in half for a hide.

Now my biggest problem was that they seemed to not be laying any eggs. Eventually i dropped a small piece of foam in there and they started lay their eggs in the foam. Just when I was about to give up and chuck the whole experiment out I noticed I had loads of tiny super worms wriggling all over the place. This time around I may try a slice of bread or a piece of rough bark. What led me to placing the foam into the setup in the first place was when I read up that they like to lay their eggs in cracks in wood.

Even though I now have adults in there I still have some that are tiny which where from the last batch of eggs the beetles laid before dying. I have a whole range of sizes.


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## Catfud (Mar 2, 2010)

KarlW said:


> How long do you find the eggs take to turn into larvae?
> 
> And do you have any pictures/description of the eggs, as i cant seem to see any (although it could be my eyes:bash
> 
> ...


The eggs and lavae are tiny! Extremely hard to see. I had hundreds in my setup but they where so small I thought nothing was happening. It wasn't until they reached about 2-3 mm in length that I started to be able to see them. That and random bits of substrate seemed to be moving by themselves 
:lol2:


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## KarlW (Oct 6, 2009)

Catfud said:


> I started to breed these for the first time last year. I now have a bunch of adults that I'm looking to start the second generation.
> 
> I used cheap oats as substrate (quite dusty) I didn't seperate the beetles either they stayed in the tub breeding and laying eggs until they passed which took about 6 months. I had a small flower pot water dish which I filled with water gel crystals. The beetles used this for hydration and left the eggs/babies alone. The beetles had a toilet roll tube cut in half for a hide.
> 
> ...


Thanks for that,

It has been really helpful. I'll put a small piece of wood in there (think ive got just the right bit) and see if that helps.

How long would you say it takes from the eggs hatching til they are a useable size?

Karl


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## Catfud (Mar 2, 2010)

I guess it depends on what size you need them for feeding off. They are much slower growing than mealworms. Some of my adults have taken a good few months to get to a decent size.

I know in commercial enviroments they give them a special feed to get them to grow fast but as far as I'm aware they are not as healthy. I don't know what it is they feed them.

Once you have established a big enough colony though you'll have so many to feed from that it will give the smaller ones plenty of time to grow.

I have also seen setups where they have a two layer tank with a layer of mesh seperating the beetles and lavae. The lavae are small enough to fall through the mesh into the bottom compartment. This is just a another method of prevention to stop the beetles eating them.


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## KarlW (Oct 6, 2009)

Catfud said:


> I guess it depends on what size you need them for feeding off. They are much slower growing than mealworms. Some of my adults have taken a good few months to get to a decent size.
> 
> I know in commercial enviroments they give them a special feed to get them to grow fast but as far as I'm aware they are not as healthy. I don't know what it is they feed them.
> 
> ...


 
Its a pity your so far away, otherwise i would come and see your setup.

Mainly i would want large ones. But ive got the space to do quite a few.

How long do you tend to find it takes for them to go from turning into beetles to being able to breed?

Karl


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## Catfud (Mar 2, 2010)

My setup is pretty basic, I kept it to a small scale just until I got the swing of things.

I have an exo terra breeding box with 2 inches of oat substrate. Now that all the beetles have died I have removed the water dish and toilet roll hides. Any tub will do though, I just happened to have the exo terra knocking about.

The only other thing I have in there is a whole potato. I don't cut this up as it goes mouldy. If you leave it in there whole it will last for ages. I'll see if I can take some pics and post them up if I get a chance.


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## KarlW (Oct 6, 2009)

Catfud said:


> My setup is pretty basic, I kept it to a small scale just until I got the swing of things.
> 
> I have an exo terra breeding box with 2 inches of oat substrate. Now that all the beetles have died I have removed the water dish and toilet roll hides. Any tub will do though, I just happened to have the exo terra knocking about.
> 
> The only other thing I have in there is a whole potato. I don't cut this up as it goes mouldy. If you leave it in there whole it will last for ages. I'll see if I can take some pics and post them up if I get a chance.


At the moment im using a plastic box (designed for snails or whatever) with about 1 1/2 inches of bran for substrate, with some egg crate in there too (for hiding or whatever)

Putting in slices of wet carrot every 3 days or so (they are munching through it all before it goes mouldy).

Been keeping a diary, and on the 4th of march i had 5 beetles, on the 10th i had 8, but at the moment i cant even tell if they have been breeding or not.


Karl


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## kirky1980 (Apr 4, 2010)

hey guys im gonna be doing this myself and was wondering if you use a heat source or not or is room temp good enough for them : victory:

cheers


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## mrhoyo (Mar 29, 2007)

kirky1980 said:


> hey guys im gonna be doing this myself and was wondering if you use a heat source or not or is room temp good enough for them : victory:
> 
> cheers


I think about 27c is best for them. I've noticed an increase in growth and pupation since I've warmed them.

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