Got worms! Yay!

[Twitchet]

Just to let the world know my silkworm eggs that Remkon very kindly sent have started hatching today and to also say again Thank you from all the little people who will enjoy them soon!

 

[Link]

That's great. Love it when you get free food

 

[Remkon]

finally, what a relief! I actually worried for em, that they froze to death in the mail...
Now give em some nice chow or they will crawl everywhere.

 

[Remkon]

That's great. Love it when you get free food

You are in the UK right?
I can send you a bunch of eggs in March if you want, they should be ready ti go kut of the fridge then.

 

[Remkon]

Today I found this in my silkworm container...

I'm gonna need more containers and more chow...

 

[Miss Lily]

These are a total pain in the arse at this size! So difficult to move and clean them as they are so tiny!

 

[Link]

You are in the UK right?
I can send you a bunch of eggs in March if you want, they should be ready ti go kut of the fridge then.

I wish live in Massachusetts went to get silk worm today there we're none

 

[Andee]

Yes the freshies, or as the chinese call them Kegos XD I really hate taking care of these guys, though I have a relatively easy time, I think that honestly is just because I have mulberry trees that I grow for my silkworms (so I specifically use the leaves of the trees during the younger stages) and also I find the brushing technique relaxing. I tend to use a semi-soft brush, and tend to use acrylic brush tips for them just because there is less likely to transfer disease. At this stage all species/types of silkworms are fragile. <3 little cuties.

 

[Remkon]

These are a total pain in the arse at this size! So difficult to move and clean them as they are so tiny!

That's why I mostly don't bother.
The chow dries out but doesnt mould so I just keep adding pieces. They may be tiny but are still producing silk so after a few days they have made a fine sheet of silk over the chow, if you want to move e, just get hold of that and you'll be able to move the majority at once.
I just keep adding chow until they are big enough to move, I don't use any tools, just the tips of my fingers.

They grow so fast it's crazy.

 

[Remkon]

I wish live in Massachusetts went to get silk worm today there we're none

No free silks for you then!

I should start a business out of these.

 

[Andee]

I wish I could figure out the best way to breed the wild species to the commercial variety. There is supposedly a way to do it. The problem is that if you do a hybrid of half and half all the females will be able to fly and the males won't, this happens almost every hatching from what I have read about. I assume it would take multiple breedings of just the hybrid breed and then a commercial strand to water it down enough? Idk I got to look into it more.

 

[Remkon]

Why breed the wild species to commercial? To introduce new genes maybe?
My bet is that they will just damage the wings of the females if they are still able to fly and selectively breed the females with the larger bodies.

 

[Andee]

I have had a... Hybrid line before kind of? I didn't hatch the original hybrids though and I have been unable to eggs or actual worms for years now. But the hybrids had a watered down strand of the wild species in their bloodline. So they had been bred several times over to get where they needed to be. I have run out of the specific zebra strand that the colony I originally got had a really amazing immune system and decided to breed it with the few pure hybrids (oxymoron XD) I got to cocoon when I realized I needed to keep their line going desperately.

The hybrids have a generally stronger immune system even as Kegos, it is generally harder to kill them with mold or germs etc. I mean not impossible but I don't sit their trying XD. The zebras I bred them with, I ended up with a really good gene pool that last me a year, then I lost their last batch of eggs due to my mom throwing them out.