Common Name: Mealworms
Scientific Name: (Tenebrio molitor) 

Size: Various - Per tub (starter colony)
Status: Captive Bred

How I keep mine

I keep my mealworms in a deep plastic box with about 10cm of bran on the base. I do not put a lid on as the container needs to stay dry. I place a piece of fruit in the box once or twice a week and replace the bran as necessary. The mealworms constantly breed under these conditions and I occasionally start up a new colony in a second box. I mainly breed mealworms for the birds in my garden but of course they also make a protein packed meal for many bugs, spiders, scorpions, amphibians, reptiles and small mammals.

Mealworms are great for showing children the life cycle of bugs, within a colony you can see the various sized larvae, pupae and the adult beetle. Each stage looks quite different and demonstrates complete metamorphosis in the insect world (I can usually send the various stages in a tub of mealworms but please ask me in advance if this is important, so that I can check availability)