MealWorm Beatles

[bobgildolf]

Hi y'all
I recently bought some mealworms and completely forgot I had them, now they have all turned into beatles. Are these safe to feed to WTFs?

[Tom Highum]

I believe they are.

[Kurt]

Yes. You could always use them to start a culture.

[Jace]

That is what I'm going to do. Start my own. And I might feed some of the adults and worms to my African Bullfrogs. Spice up their diet a bit. I sometimes think my frogs eat better than I do......

[Kevin1]

I sometimes think my frogs eat better than I do......

I know what you mean.

[bobgildolf]

Yes. You could always use them to start a culture.

Yeah, I like that idea. How would I go about doing that?

[Kurt]

Get some oatmeal and/or bran, some chopped carrot or potato, and a container. The container I would use would be a critter keeper that has no ventilation on the sides. I would also place a paper towel in between the top and the rest of the keeper to prevent unwanted bugs from moving in.
Place the bran or oatmeal in the bottom of the keeper. I think you will get better results with the bran over the oatmeal, however the latter is cheaper generally. For moisture, chop a carrot or potato and place on top of the bran/oatmeal. Watch for any mold that might form on these vegetables and remove any moldy pieces. I prefer carrots for the beta-carotenes, which are good, natural source for vitamin A, necessary for many developing amphibians.
Place some mealworm beetles in the culture and wait. Eventually you will see small mealworms start to appear. If you get a magnifying glass, you may be able to swift out micro-mealworms to feed froglets and small frogs such as darts.
If you don't have any beetles, then use mealworms. This of course will take longer to get started as you wait for them to pupate and mature.

[Tom Highum]

Also adding some cereal that has lots of nutritional value I have heard is a smart move.

[Kurt]

Like Cheerios? They good for cholesterol, but then again so is oatmeal. I wouldn't recommend Trix, Captain Crunch, or Frosted Luck Charms, despite the fact that they are magically delicious.

[Kevin1]

I wouldn't recommend Trix, Captain Crunch, or Frosted Luck Charms, despite the fact that they are magically delicious.

I got a kick out of that.

[Kurt]

Thanks, glad you liked it. Not only do I try to help people and their frogs, but I also like to make them laugh too. The people, not the frogs, they never laugh no matter how funny the joke is.

[Tom Highum]

What about coco puffs? No like the stuff that kids hate their moms for getting. Tastes miserable but is good for you.

[Kevin1]

Thanks, glad you liked it. Not only do I try to help people and their frogs, but I also like to make them laugh too. The people, not the frogs, they never laugh no matter how funny the joke is.

Well I think that's a good idea. A good teaching tool. Plus who doesn't like a good laugh. win win

[1beataway]

If you don't have any beetles, then use mealworms. This of course will take longer to get started as you wait for them to pupate and mature.

How long would this take? And how many mealworms is enough?

[Kurt]

I can't really tell you how long it will take. I would say ten mealworms would be a good start.

[bobgildolf]

All sounds simple enough, thanks

[Kurt]

You're welcome and good luck.

[1beataway]

I set this up in hopes of having mealworm babies...I think I killed the mealworms. I was sick and kept forgetting to give them fresh carrots, and then I wasn't home a few days and didn't realize I wouldn't be.

Oh well...I'll try again in a few weeks.

[Kurt]

Did you ever have beetles? If so, you probably have mealworms coming your way.

[1beataway]

Did you ever have beetles? If so, you probably have mealworms coming your way.

No. It looks like some were going to become beetles soon though. I don't know any of the terminology, but, there were things in there that didn't look like the mealworms.