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As far as I know, two months is the minimum requirement. @redhorse, I took out about 40 of the ones that you sent me and 38 hatched. I am holding the last two just in case they are late hatchers. Look how cute 💕

Haha! Yeah I saw that with my second gen group. They became jerks to each other once they reached the fifth instar. It was funny to watch though. I remember one whom headbutted another worm and then whacked him with his rear end. Funny how the following generations didn't behave like this.

This is just my opinion, I don't know for sure but I wouldn't feed them to your cham because it appears to have a lot of hairs and in some larvae such hairs protect them from being eaten by causing irritation. I know this is the case for some, not sure if it holds true for this guy, but that's...

I put certain plants for the benefit of the insects. Like I have a lot of parsley for the black swallowtails but I didn't get any.

Why does everyone get caterpillars on their plants, but me? 😭

Congratulations!

No, it's not grasserie. There aren't any bodily fluids leaking or swelling. I probably should have mentioned that this silkworm is darker in color because its an early instar. My third instars usually have a lot of dark markings , and the head capsule is black until the fourth instar. But...

I am unsure of what is going on. A few have died today, but I am not sure of what. In the picture below, I can see something has come out of his rear. Does anyone know what may be wrong? They are fed mulberry leaves, and I rinse and dry them before giving it to them.

Congratulations Redhorse!

From what I have found, they can be found in quite a few states / provinces in North America.

Ok I got an answer from a guy at the Caterpillar Lab. I wish to share the answer here. He said it is an Abbott's Sphinx moth caterpillar in its fourth instar. I googled it and there's a site with a matching picture. He said when it molts into the fifth instar, it will be a very good snake mimic.

Thank you for answering. It can't be a hornworm as it is missing the side marks. But yeah, that was my first reaction, too.

Can anyone help me identify what kind of caterpillar this is? I can't seem to find it on my own.

Yes. Give them a good rinse and then let them dry off.

I have never come across anything mentioning figs or fig trees. I have read that they can eat white mulberry, black mulberry and Osage Orange. They do not like Red mulberry because it is too acidic I can't say no to fig leaves 100% because I haven't seen it mentioned either way.

Lol! I had to learn about that the hard way! I remember waiting for the eggs to turn dark so I could put them in the fridge, but instead they went orange-yellow. A few days later, I found an unexpected hatchling, and noticed all the little dark heads appearing. I knew I was in trouble.

@redhorse, ok so about diapause; Eggs are already pre-determined to diapause, or not. Those that will diapause usually turn solid black / dark brown three days after the mother lays them. This is when they are ready for cold storage. However, some silkworms have become multivoltine, meaning...

I was told once they need at least 2 - 3 months.

When they are that dark, solid color, they are in diapause and may need a period of cold temperatures to make them develop. I don't know if they would hatch without it. I guess we'll find out? Sometimes you get eggs that do not go into diapause. They look different than this.

Phew! Hopefully they will be here tomorrow. Thanks for the update!