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  1. #1
    Apprentice SPAM Janitor MarkS's Avatar
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    Mites with the meal worms.

    Got a problem with my mealworm colony that is kind of gross. I don't think it's really affecting the mealworms other then using up all their food and water, but I seem to have had a mite explosion, I don't know what they are, meal mites or dust mites or grain mites or what. But there seems to have been a population explosion of these itty bitty little white mites in my mealworm colonies. How do I get rid of these things without killing off the mealworms too?

    Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus

  2. #2
    BPnet Veteran Jerhart's Avatar
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    Re: Mites with the meal worms.

    Hey Mark

    Couldn't find much about how to get rid of them without affecting your mealworm colony. Dang!

    Here is what I could find on the mites.

    http://www.sialis.org/raisingmealworms.htm

    Problems with mites: Sometimes a mealworm colony gets infested by grain mites (Acarus sp.) The mites may come from the mealworm supplier, in bran, or litter from poultry production, and may infest a colony that has been around for a long period of time. Excessive moisture may be a contributor. They are prolific breeders (800 eggs/female) and can withstand temperatures of 0 degrees and still hatch when brought to room temperature.

    The mites are tiny and round, whitish or tan in color, and have eight legs. They may cling to air holes and look like very fine sawdust. Mites can not fly.

    To prevent mite infestation:

    Use only wheat middlings/hulls.
    float mealworm containers in water (sort of like a moat); or put the container up on legs, each of which sits in a small container of water (which will also keep ants out).
    use vaseline (a 2" wide band on the outside of the container just after you wash and dry it) to prevent mites from getting into a worm bed.
    Jack Finch recommends sterilizing all bran/grain (by microwaving it or placing it in a subzero freezer for several days) prior to adding it to a colony to prevent mite introduction.
    Blaine Johnson thought using aplies and potatoes as a moisture source may have connected to a mite problem he had, and switched to carrots.
    If your colony does become infested, the mites will kill the larvae and adults. Destroy the colony, or freeze it and feed it to birds. Bleach the container before re-using it.
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    MarkS (08-20-2009)

  4. #3
    BPnet Veteran Jerhart's Avatar
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    Re: Mites with the meal worms.

    BTW, were you affected by either of the tornados/storms today?

    I was just west of the one on Portland.

    Just got a lot of rain with a little water in the basement. DOH!
    ____JOSHUA____
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    ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK GO KU!!

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  5. #4
    Apprentice SPAM Janitor MarkS's Avatar
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    Re: Mites with the meal worms.

    Thanks Josh, I guess it's back to the drawing board. freeze them off and start over with a fresh bag of feed. I really hate to do that though, it's taken me some time to get the colony going in the first place.

    We did have a tornado warning up here and were supposedly near it's path, but it died out before it got this far and we never even had strong winds. The rain on the other hand was coming down in buckets. REALLY heavy rains, it was kind of fun to watch.
    Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus

  6. #5
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    Re: Mites with the meal worms.

    In the past I have been able to control mites long enough to set up a new colony by not feeding them for a day or so then putting a potato in for awhile then pulling the potato out and placing it in a bag and removing any mealworms then discarding the bag. Use those mealworms as food. Keep the old colony far away from the new one and don't move worms from one to the other.This only works in the beginning, if the mites are really bad(horror movie image) its easier to just start over, and buy mealworms till the new colony is up and running.

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    Re: Making your own mealworm farm

    Quote Originally Posted by Franckw View Post
    Hi, get a mites on the colony of the mealworms could be dangerous for all mealworms, of course depend the mites too.But should be very careful with all the foods when you give to your mealworms. Check here for how to make your own mealworms farm: https://atbuz.com/post/making-mealworm-farm/ Hope this article can help you.
    I'm pretty sure they solved this or gave up by now...this thread is 10 years old-

    Good info but it's always best to start a new thread rather than trying to bring one back from the grave... thanks-
    Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength.
    Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

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    pretends2bnormal (06-22-2019)

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