Silkworm Egg

[ChameLIonLover]

Hi guys, here is a pic of some of the eggs I got some coastal silkworms. Not sure if you can see but there are many different colors such as light and dark purples. I have had them out towards the top of my cham enclosure around 78-80 degrees or so as they are close to the lights. What do you guys think? The are just in a small circular container with some paper towel or toilet paper.

I've read they are supposed to hatch in 10 days or less so I am starting to get a little concerned. I do have a little tote container set up for when they do hatch (assuming they hatch...)

Thanks for any comments!
-Li

 

[MJKowal]

I may be wrong but I believe your supposed to leave them at room temp. to hatch.... I'm wondering if it's possible that you burnt them? I could be totally wrong here, just my thoughts though.

 

[dimil]

Mine hatched last week after having them for 5 days. I had them under an incandescent bulb with a hood for heat above room temp. They hatch and grow faster that way. The wattage I think was 30 watt. Good luck. I have probably close to 300 worms now...yay

 

[ChameLIonLover]

I think I'll start another batch in another container and just keep them at room temp. I'm really hoping the eggs didn't get burned or anything like that, and that they hatch out eventually. I measured the heat and it looks as if it gets as hot as 86 or so... That may be too hot. We'll see. Thanks though guys,

-Li

 

[Andee]

They are supposed to be grey like that, it means they are fertile.

 

[ChameLIonLover]

They are supposed to be grey like that, it means they are fertile.

Good news! Some of the silkies have hatched! woohoo success so far. About the chow... the dry chow to water ratio seems way off... I had to add way more chow it seemed like and it is still pretty darn moist even after being put in the fridge for the past 5 hours or so.

 

[LoosePin15]

Good news! Some of the silkies have hatched! woohoo success so far. About the chow... the dry chow to water ratio seems way off... I had to add way more chow it seemed like and it is still pretty darn moist even after being put in the fridge for the past 5 hours or so.

I thought the same thing the first time I made silkworm chow. I read where you could grate it, but my chow always turns out too moist. So...when they were babies, I got one of those medicine syringes that come with kids' medicine, put some chow in that and squirted it around the small silkies. Once they got bigger, I just cut slices of the chow and put it in the with them. Seemed to work for me. Good luck!

 

[jajeanpierre]

Good news! Some of the silkies have hatched! woohoo success so far. About the chow... the dry chow to water ratio seems way off... I had to add way more chow it seemed like and it is still pretty darn moist even after being put in the fridge for the past 5 hours or so.

You have to cook it. Don't worry about it being too wet. If you are using Coastal's chow, just make it up exactly as they say. I don't think you want to skimp with the water ratio, especially if you have an a/c going.

 

[ChameLIonLover]

You have to cook it. Don't worry about it being too wet. If you are using Coastal's chow, just make it up exactly as they say. I don't think you want to skimp with the water ratio, especially if you have an a/c going.

In my case then, I probably did not follow the correct Chow to water ratio. I wonder if it's possible to rehydrate the chow with a syringe and water. I have a couple questions in this regard:
1) how wet should the chow be?
2) should I change food out everyday?
3) are these instructions good? http://www.mulberryfarms.com/care-raising-tips-faq-12.html

 

[jajeanpierre]

In my case then, I probably did not follow the correct Chow to water ratio. I wonder if it's possible to rehydrate the chow with a syringe and water. I have a couple questions in this regard:
1) how wet should the chow be?
2) should I change food out everyday?
3) are these instructions good? http://www.mulberryfarms.com/care-raising-tips-faq-12.html

I found silkworm to be a pretty forgiving little worm with a very high survival rate in a variety of conditions.

I've had eggs shipped to me by mail in the heat of Texas summer or spring and they were hatching on arrival. I've raised hatched them in a very cold room in the winter. They took weeks to hatch, but did and I had almost 100% survive. They are really adaptable.

I take the chow in my fingers and try to crumble it into thin crumbles. Wet hands makes it a little easier. For little babies I will take the freshly cooked chow and spread it between sheets of waxed paper so it is very thin. I've started babies on fresh mulberry leaves or chow.

I rarely change their box but do keep them on a screen. I find cleaning them to be a bit of a challenge to separate them from the wad of silk and frass (poop). I suspect I've killed more trying to untangle them from their silk than any other way.

I try to feed just enough so there is little or no left over food, which is why I really like fresh mulberry leaves for babies. With their small mouths, babies need a thin edge to be able to eat and the chow is hard to get into anything other than a clump. I've hear some people complain that once they start on fresh leaves, they don't like to eat the chow, but I just smear chow on fresh leaves and they transition without a hitch.

I bought a couple of native mulberry bushes and a commercial tree this year so I hope next summer I'll have plenty of fresh leaves to feed my worms from spring to fall. Although the chow seems good, I can't believe it is a very good food. It is a mix of soy and mulberry leaves. The soy bothers me, perhaps unnecessarily. I want my chameleons fed on prey that eat healthy vitamin dense green foods, not soy.

 

[jajeanpierre]

In my case then, I probably did not follow the correct Chow to water ratio. I wonder if it's possible to rehydrate the chow with a syringe and water. I have a couple questions in this regard:
1) how wet should the chow be?
2) should I change food out everyday?
3) are these instructions good? http://www.mulberryfarms.com/care-raising-tips-faq-12.html

I read their instructions and, believe me, silkworms are a lot tougher and resilient than they suggest!

Certainly, they will grow faster if kept warmer, but slow growth is a benefit as your worms last longer. I feed out the bigger worms, leaving the small ones to grow. I've always found there to be a huge difference in growth rate in a group of eggs. I don't know why--maybe it is because I don't keep them at "ideal" temperatures!

I have found newly hatched silk worms are quite capable of demolishing an old, tough leaf in no time. I've rarely given them new leaves because I can't reach them (commercial mulberry trees are really tall). They switch away from fresh leaves easily if you smear a thin coat of chow on the leaf--they eat the leaf and the chow together.

I have rehydrated the top skin of the chow by crumbling it with a bit more water. I've also misted them, which I think is a no no, but I keep them near an a/c vent.

The instructions make them appear to be delicate, and I've found them anything but. I'm sure the instructions give you ideal conditions, but it is not necessary. You'll see. They are my favorite feeder.

 

[Wowbango]

I personally, have found that it is always too wet if you follow the instructions on the coastalsilkworms label. I live really close to the San Diego Location, so I just pick up locally from them. I've picked up the already pre-made tub, and it's nice and firm and can use a cheese grater easily with it. When I tried to make my own, it was too mushy, and not firm enough. So in the future, i'll use a little less water than what's suggested.

 

[ChameLIonLover]

I read their instructions and, believe me, silkworms are a lot tougher and resilient than they suggest!

Certainly, they will grow faster if kept warmer, but slow growth is a benefit as your worms last longer. I feed out the bigger worms, leaving the small ones to grow. I've always found there to be a huge difference in growth rate in a group of eggs. I don't know why--maybe it is because I don't keep them at "ideal" temperatures!

I have found newly hatched silk worms are quite capable of demolishing an old, tough leaf in no time. I've rarely given them new leaves because I can't reach them (commercial mulberry trees are really tall). They switch away from fresh leaves easily if you smear a thin coat of chow on the leaf--they eat the leaf and the chow together.

I have rehydrated the top skin of the chow by crumbling it with a bit more water. I've also misted them, which I think is a no no, but I keep them near an a/c vent.

The instructions make them appear to be delicate, and I've found them anything but. I'm sure the instructions give you ideal conditions, but it is not necessary. You'll see. They are my favorite feeder.

Thank you kindly for the advice. You rehydrate the skin of the chow? I have like a little syringe that I used to use when I got my wisdom teeth out to rehydrate as the old chow was getting to look pretty dry. should I be getting rid of old chow and feeding fresh, moist chow every day? I have no leaves, although I'm sure I could find a mulberry tree somewhere in the city. Do you keep a lid on your bugs to keep humidity in better? I am also near an AC vent and use a space heater to get the lil tote around 80 degrees. They seem to be doing OK. I really wanna grow these suckers out a little so I can feed em off to my guy who has not been eating much at all.

 

[jajeanpierre]

Thank you kindly for the advice. You rehydrate the skin of the chow? I have like a little syringe that I used to use when I got my wisdom teeth out to rehydrate as the old chow was getting to look pretty dry. should I be getting rid of old chow and feeding fresh, moist chow every day? I have no leaves, although I'm sure I could find a mulberry tree somewhere in the city. Do you keep a lid on your bugs to keep humidity in better? I am also near an AC vent and use a space heater to get the lil tote around 80 degrees. They seem to be doing OK. I really wanna grow these suckers out a little so I can feed em off to my guy who has not been eating much at all.

They take a while to grow up big enough to feed. Tripling the weight of a newly hatched silkworm doesn't look like they've grown at all but they actually have.

Fiddling around with a syringe is just too much work and mess for me. Do you have it completely covered in the fridge? How long does will your food last per the manufacturer?

If I've left the wrap off the bowl of cooked chow and it has dried out in the fridge, I'll just add a bit of water the the top and rehydrate the skin on the top without making a mucky mess. If I've over fed and the chow in the box of silkworms has dried out, I just leave it in the box and try to feed less--idealy only as much as they will finish in a few hours which is hard to calculate when they are very little. Dried out chow in the silkworm box is garbage. I would never try to rehydrate it. I will only moisten the chow in the fridge. Keep it sealed in the fridge.

I do not understand why you would have a space heater at the same time you are running your a/c unit. Just find the warmest part of the house for them--and don't cook them in the sun. My chameleon room is a very cold room in the winter. I just put them on the shelves above the lighting. They got quite cold at night and I don't think they ever got anywhere near 80F. They grew just fine, albeit slowly.

I don't put any lid on them. I let them grow up before I change them. The food dries out and doesn't cause a problem for them.

Some chameleons love silk worms, some don't. Some go through phases of eating them and then go off them for awhile. If you have a chameleon who is not eating a lot--and what does "not been eating much" mean to you?--there may be some health issue going on which should be investigated. Healthy chameleons should eat. If they don't, there's a problem. Mature chameleons eat less than growing ones, so you will notice a drop in appetite as the animal matures which can sometimes be worrying. Have you taken a regular weight on your animal with a good, reliable scale? Weights tell you a lot about the condition of your animal.

 

[ChameLIonLover]

They take a while to grow up big enough to feed. Tripling the weight of a newly hatched silkworm doesn't look like they've grown at all but they actually have.

Fiddling around with a syringe is just too much work and mess for me. Do you have it completely covered in the fridge? How long does will your food last per the manufacturer?
Do I have the chow covered in the fridge? Yes, it is in a tupperware. I'm not sure if i understand your second question. Once cooked, from coastal silkworms it says it'll last a month in the fridge. I don't know if I cooked it up correctly, but they have been eating it when it's fresh. What I did to rehydrate was use the synringe and directly dribble a few drops of water onto the food that the worms are on. I'm afraid that may have killed them...
If I've left the wrap off the bowl of cooked chow and it has dried out in the fridge, I'll just add a bit of water the the top and rehydrate the skin on the top without making a mucky mess. If I've over fed and the chow in the box of silkworms has dried out, I just leave it in the box and try to feed less--idealy only as much as they will finish in a few hours which is hard to calculate when they are very little. Dried out chow in the silkworm box is garbage. I would never try to rehydrate it. I will only moisten the chow in the fridge. Keep it sealed in the fridge. Understood.

I do not understand why you would have a space heater at the same time you are running your a/c unit. Just find the warmest part of the house for them--and don't cook them in the sun. My chameleon room is a very cold room in the winter. I just put them on the shelves above the lighting. They got quite cold at night and I don't think they ever got anywhere near 80F. They grew just fine, albeit slowly.The AC is on because I live at home with my family, and don't have control over whether or not it is on or off. I won't be using the space heater anymore, but I am using a light bulb. As per your suggestoin, I think I'll no longer use any heat source and play it safe

I don't put any lid on them. I let them grow up before I change them. The food dries out and doesn't cause a problem for them.So you leave the old dry food in the silkworm bin?

Some chameleons love silk worms, some don't. Some go through phases of eating them and then go off them for awhile. If you have a chameleon who is not eating a lot--and what does "not been eating much" mean to you?--there may be some health issue going on which should be investigated. Healthy chameleons should eat. If they don't, there's a problem. Mature chameleons eat less than growing ones, so you will notice a drop in appetite as the animal matures which can sometimes be worrying. Have you taken a regular weight on your animal with a good, reliable scale? Weights tell you a lot about the condition of your animal.

I was going to buy a cheap scale at walmart or amazon. Any suggestions? My guy has only been eating a super worm or so every other day or so. I've taken him to a vet, gotten fecals done, and offered different bugs. Should I try and take him to another vet?

 

[SirCal]

Im so glad I found this thread, I just ordered some silk worm eggs and they should be arriving soon im really excited to watch the whole process take place. Im sure ill have many questions so ill be coming back to this thread frequently

 

[niels99]

In sorry to interrupt. But i had a question that Fits under the topic.
Can i Order like 2000 eggs and freeze All off them and Hatch 100 every week. Will the eggs still Hatch after freezing? Cuz i can only Order bulk. And have Just 1 cham

 

[KapitalJ]

Not sure about freezing them. Refrigerate maybe is what you mean. If they are shipped with a cold pack you should be able to put them back in the fridge and use as needed.

 

[niels99]

Yeah ill keep them at 5 degrees celcius. How Long Will the eggs last?

 

[SirCal]

I believe the eggs must be shipped to you cold from the supplier. Once the eggs are removed from cold temps the process begins and theres no going back