# Help! mealworms have escaped in my room!



## RavinBex

Hi, It is very clumsy of me as I've owned reptiles most of my life, but I own a Leo Gecko, and some of the mealworms I feed to him have escaped!
My friend came round recently and said that he nearly stood on the plastic box they're kept in, but as he said NEARLY, I thought nothing of it. But, as I've found out, he did stand on the box and there was a small crack with a hole in the side! I randomly saw a couple on my floor in my bedroom and immediately moved everything and looked for anymore. I found several between cracks in floorboards/skirting boards. That's another problem, I recently took up my carpet to have floor boards instead, and so the escaped mealworms have probably gone between the cracks!!!

To cut a really long story (sorry lol) short, how the hell am I gonna catch these things! But I was thinking that they will just wander around a bit, turn into beetles after a while, and then just die as there probably isn't any food for them to eat???

Please get back to me quickly!!!

Thanks =):blush:


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## kaimarion

I know how you feel, I've been finding beetles everywhere in my room for the past 2 months and I still doubt I have found the lot of the little annoying buggers.
I can't really help you out here unfortunately.


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## SleepyD

RavinBex said:


> To cut a really long story (sorry lol) short, how the hell am I gonna catch these things! But I was thinking that they will just wander around a bit, turn into beetles after a while, and then just die as there probably isn't any food for them to eat???


unfortunately it depends on what you mean by food ~ they'll eat soft wood, any fluff or crumbs etc so chances are there'll be plenty that they can eat ........ only thing I'd say try is laying fresh slices of apple etc on pieces of paper on the floor to try and tempt them back


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## RavinBex

o no =S thing is they got through my floorboards as there are a few biggish cracks and i got a torch and shone it through cracks and there are loads of wood shavings!!! plus its winter here so i've got my heating on regularly!!! nooooooooooooooooooo!!!!! I don't like beetles =S haha

Thanks ever so much 4 replying though people =)
Peace x


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## tashaprincess

I had some escape was finding them everywhere, luckily i moved flats, problem solved!! (landlord was a complete twat too so is funny lol)


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## RavinBex

haha thats one good way 2 do it!!! lmao


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## RavinBex

kaimarion said:


> I know how you feel, I've been finding beetles everywhere in my room for the past 2 months and I still doubt I have found the lot of the little annoying buggers.
> I can't really help you out here unfortunately.


another question...i just read up on Darkling Beetles (mealworms) and the site said their pupal stage is around 6 days and their beetle stage is aroud 5 - 10 days...but as says above, she has been finding them for last 2 months!?! 
I soooooooo hope they don't run around my room for the next 2 months coz i'l sleep on the sofa!!! haha


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## LoveForLizards

RavinBex said:


> another question...i just read up on Darkling Beetles (mealworms) and the site said their pupal stage is around 6 days and their beetle stage is aroud 5 - 10 days...but as says above, she has been finding them for last 2 months!?!
> I soooooooo hope they don't run around my room for the next 2 months coz i'l sleep on the sofa!!! haha


No. The beetles lay eggs within 5-10 days most likely. They can live for a good few months if at the right temps and they have food. Get the hoover out and go around every floor board, skirting board, radiator (yes, they climb radiators), kitchen cupboards, bathroom cupboards, airing cupboards, behind washing machines, behind tumble driers etc etc. 
Also get some fly tape, a paper plate and some food. Line the edge of the plate with fly tape and put veggies in the middle then lay them out in warm cupboards and under kitchen cabinets. Check them everyday and if you catch any pick them off and put them in a tub and freeze them, only put a small amount of veg on the plate at any one time say a couple of slices of carrot or half a leaf of iceberg lettuce.


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## kaimarion

RavinBex said:


> another question...i just read up on Darkling Beetles (mealworms) and the site said their pupal stage is around 6 days and their beetle stage is aroud 5 - 10 days...but as says above, she has been finding them for last 2 months!?!
> I soooooooo hope they don't run around my room for the next 2 months coz i'l sleep on the sofa!!! haha


Damn these ******* tiny avatars........
BTW I'am a dude, there is a larger pic in my album so there is the proof :blush:.


And yes I have been finding them for the past 2 months although I haven't seen any too recently so hopefully that will be the last of them.


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## Reptilover

Oh dear... Picture this...

Sat on the toilet...

Minding your own "business"

along comes BIG BLACK beetle...

Oh my :censor: god!!!

:lol2: Its happened to me... twice!!! Im not scared of them theyre just the last things you think of when on the toilet... :devil:

Good luck with the catching of these little terrors.. the chances of them breeding are slim with the weather were having now but doesnt mean they carnt theyre like cockroaches, very adaptable.

: victory:


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## REDDEV1L

I thought my tub was escape proof....but the other day was sorting stuff out under my bed and found one inside an empty jiffybag. Must've gone in there for warmth I'd have thought. So, as you do, ripped my room apart looking and didn't find anymore.
Not sure how it got out, but all I can think is its either been on the lid when I took it off and didn't notice, or a beetle or mealy has been hidden on/in some veg ive chucked in the bin and its bitten its way out the bag and wandered across my floor...lol

I have set-up a little trap beside the drawers my tanks stand on incase of any cricket escapees but so far it hasn't caught anything. It's just a modified minnow trap (Plastic bottle with top cut off, turned inside out and put back in...with some fish food/dog food in it....might work might not...might need to be modified a bit to catch mealies/beetles as I've got the bottleneck pointing up so the crix cant get back out very easily but means its harder for other stuff to get in)


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## LoveForLizards

Reptilover said:


> :lol2: Its happened to me... twice!!! Im not scared of them theyre just the last things you think of when on the toilet... :devil:


That could sound quite worrying :lol2:

Reddev1l - add about an egg cup of salt into the mixture, they will eat it and quickly die from salt posioning : victory:


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## Sollytear

Go to wilkinsons or somewhere thast stocks a product called RAID. Its a bug-skilling spray. Lots of types. Go on their website and look for one that will work on bettles and worms/catapilars/maggots. Just spray it down into the cracks. I had a cricket infestation under my floorboards... i used RAID fly killer (only 1 i could find) and that killed them straight away. I put 10 or so 10sec spirts down there over the period of 2 days, worked like a charm.


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## Shell195

Sollytear said:


> Go to wilkinsons or somewhere thast stocks a product called RAID. Its a bug-skilling spray. Lots of types. Go on their website and look for one that will work on bettles and worms/catapilars/maggots. Just spray it down into the cracks. I had a cricket infestation under my floorboards... i used RAID fly killer (only 1 i could find) and that killed them straight away. I put 10 or so 10sec spirts down there over the period of 2 days, worked like a charm.


 
If you`re doing this I would remove all pets from the area first


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