Breeding silkworms?

[MissSkittles]

If I have a container with a heat pad to keep it warmer, could I do this in the winter. We are going broke shipping silkworms for our cham and winter shipping is hard!

This is an old thread. I’m not sure about using a heat pad…it may overheat the silkies. It might be better to hatch them out on the top of your chameleon enclosure but with some distance from the heat of the lights. There’s a great thread about hatching and raising silks. https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/posting-my-silkworm-experience.168402/

 

[Casket_Case]

It takes a year to hatch because by the time you had eggs, the growing season for mulberry leaves has ended... next spring, when the weather warms up, they will hatch.

The silkworms are very much in tune with the seasons.. they won't hatch unless they 'know' that there will be ample food to eat.

Same with the animal kingdom.. they don't breed in general when there is a shortage of food, or when they can't afford to be gravid given their own individual circumstance.

I was once a suggie breeder. You had to give them lots of protein in order for them to breed, in order for their offsprings to survive, basically, they breed when time is good.

So the reason they take a year to hatch is typically because they’re frozen? So if they’re hatched somewhere warm like Florida they’ll hatch faster?

 

[MissSkittles]

So the reason they take a year to hatch is typically because they’re frozen? So if they’re hatched somewhere warm like Florida they’ll hatch faster?

The eggs that we get by purchasing have already been given their cool ‘rest’ time and are ready to hatch. When I have eggs from my own silk moths, I place them in a warm fridge (about 50-55f) for at least 3 months before hatching them. However, the longer they’re kept cool, the lower the hatch rate. Not sure how long is too long. I am in Florida and have found that putting the eggs in my overly warm garage (usually 80+f) gives me the best hatching. In cooler months I have used a very low wattage heat mat but I’ve had the eggs elevated at least an inch or 2 above it so I don’t bake them.

 

[Tarzanfam]

This is an old thread. I’m not sure about using a heat pad…it may overheat the silkies. It might be better to hatch them out on the top of your chameleon enclosure but with some distance from the heat of the lights. There’s a great thread about hatching and raising silks. https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/posting-my-silkworm-experience.168402/

Thank you! This is so great.