Dermestid Files!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
New Label: Journals of 2011
Since i've been so busy making journals this year on my now amazing dermy colony i thought i'd give them their own special label that i'll be adding onto all journal entries for this year and possibly the next one to keep them organized and so others can view them post by post and never miss one.
Harvesting Revisited/Cont.
What is harvesting?
Harvesting is when you take a colony of dermestids that haven't been cleaned in ages and decide to harves the beeltes/larvae from the colony as well as cleaning out their old container for another busy year of dermestid keeping.
When should I harvest?
You should harvest at least once a year if not more then that. Usually when the container is to the point where you can't find what your looking for,[Dermestids ect...] then its time to harvest your colony. The colony shouldn't be left to fend for its self, ie if it needs to be cleaned clean it as soon as you can or it'll take even longer. The longer you wait the harder it is to clean. When to harvest also depends on how big the dermestid colony is and how much frass they make in a certian time frame. Some need cleaning once a month were as others need cleaning once every 2 months.
Why Harvest?
You need to harvest in order for you to see the dermestids. Also the frass can be fatal to the enviroment and can be bad for the health of the colony. Also harvesting helps to get the dermestids into breeding mode. Since they mate more often the total population goes up considerably and can lead to population booms.
Hope this helps you in harvesting a dermestid colony.
Harvesting is when you take a colony of dermestids that haven't been cleaned in ages and decide to harves the beeltes/larvae from the colony as well as cleaning out their old container for another busy year of dermestid keeping.
When should I harvest?
You should harvest at least once a year if not more then that. Usually when the container is to the point where you can't find what your looking for,[Dermestids ect...] then its time to harvest your colony. The colony shouldn't be left to fend for its self, ie if it needs to be cleaned clean it as soon as you can or it'll take even longer. The longer you wait the harder it is to clean. When to harvest also depends on how big the dermestid colony is and how much frass they make in a certian time frame. Some need cleaning once a month were as others need cleaning once every 2 months.
Why Harvest?
You need to harvest in order for you to see the dermestids. Also the frass can be fatal to the enviroment and can be bad for the health of the colony. Also harvesting helps to get the dermestids into breeding mode. Since they mate more often the total population goes up considerably and can lead to population booms.
Hope this helps you in harvesting a dermestid colony.
New Tamplet
Since it is spring i've decided to change the background to a spring one i'll be changing it every month or so depending on the season ect..
Day #532 Dermestes Lardarius Update
Day#532-Well its been quite a while since my last update and these guys have exploded in numbers i now have over 110. They have been eating way better and since the fact that the population is so high they eat way more too. I can't wait till the fall so I can do stuff with them!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Jot Notes So Far!
-Preventing larder beetles [Dermestes lardarius] is often the best approach in control as if they never get into your house you wouldn’t need to control them
-Larder beetle control methods usually depend on three things:
1-Season- In some seasons they are more active and are easier to scout out and find the source of infestation.
2-House Temperatures- Different temperatures in a home also effect how long it takes them to develop the temperatures also effect how often the larvae/adults wander away from their food sources.
3-Food sources- Food sources with higher protein content make the larvae grow faster; as well water helps the females produce more eggs. Example: Normally 1 female would produce,[on average] about 100-105 eggs but when water is normally available [such as in a bathroom] they can lay 250-800 eggs
-There is a variety of ways to go about control;
-Physical force- finding the infestation and either freezing them [And the infested material] at a low temperature for instance in your freezer to kill off all the life stages because if you just kill adults and larvae the eggs will just make more larder beetles in the next month.
-Insecticides- After you’ve found the source of the infestation [and you can’t freeze it] you should then use insecticides. If the spray doesn’t have the following chemicals it won’t work:
-Malathion
-Propoxur
-Diazinon
-Do not use insecticides in or around an area that children play in as the chemicals are harmful to the lungs.
-Cleaning- Without knowing where the infestation is it is often hard to actually kill all the larder beetles. Cleaning around where you find them and vacuuming them up will at least help reduce numbers. Cleaning isn’t really a good control method but it works for reducing the number of larder beetles in your home.
-There are a lot of different ways to prevent a larder beetle infestation from even accruing.
Chaulking- Caulking works in preventing the larder beetles from even entering the home in the first place. Firstly find all the openings were the larder beetles can get into a home.
-Next caulk holes in baseboards, roof, chimney openings, doors that have holes in them and anywhere else that seems like it could be a potential spot for larder beetles to invade into and breed.
Sources of the infestation:
-No matter how well you prevent them from getting in chances are you probably didn’t seal every last crack around the outside of your house.
-Even if you did they can still get in via an open window or just go in when you do.
-this is generally what happens once they get into your home,
-They find the nearest food source that is high in protein and begin to lay eggs
-Larder beetle control methods usually depend on three things:
1-Season- In some seasons they are more active and are easier to scout out and find the source of infestation.
2-House Temperatures- Different temperatures in a home also effect how long it takes them to develop the temperatures also effect how often the larvae/adults wander away from their food sources.
3-Food sources- Food sources with higher protein content make the larvae grow faster; as well water helps the females produce more eggs. Example: Normally 1 female would produce,[on average] about 100-105 eggs but when water is normally available [such as in a bathroom] they can lay 250-800 eggs
-There is a variety of ways to go about control;
-Physical force- finding the infestation and either freezing them [And the infested material] at a low temperature for instance in your freezer to kill off all the life stages because if you just kill adults and larvae the eggs will just make more larder beetles in the next month.
-Insecticides- After you’ve found the source of the infestation [and you can’t freeze it] you should then use insecticides. If the spray doesn’t have the following chemicals it won’t work:
-Malathion
-Propoxur
-Diazinon
-Do not use insecticides in or around an area that children play in as the chemicals are harmful to the lungs.
-Cleaning- Without knowing where the infestation is it is often hard to actually kill all the larder beetles. Cleaning around where you find them and vacuuming them up will at least help reduce numbers. Cleaning isn’t really a good control method but it works for reducing the number of larder beetles in your home.
-There are a lot of different ways to prevent a larder beetle infestation from even accruing.
Chaulking- Caulking works in preventing the larder beetles from even entering the home in the first place. Firstly find all the openings were the larder beetles can get into a home.
-Next caulk holes in baseboards, roof, chimney openings, doors that have holes in them and anywhere else that seems like it could be a potential spot for larder beetles to invade into and breed.
Sources of the infestation:
-No matter how well you prevent them from getting in chances are you probably didn’t seal every last crack around the outside of your house.
-Even if you did they can still get in via an open window or just go in when you do.
-this is generally what happens once they get into your home,
-They find the nearest food source that is high in protein and begin to lay eggs
Finally
I can finally do a science essay on dermestes lardarius WOOP!
I;ll post my jot notes when i'm done em!
I;ll post my jot notes when i'm done em!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
My Dermestid Colony
Day#525-Its been awhile but i think i've gotten the hang of dermestids, the colony has exploded to over 100+ and is still going!They eat so much now its insane. The colony has also been doing well in the kritter keeper and has started to chew on their bedding as well as make their own[frass] i think if they keep this up i'll have to clean them in around 3-4 months and will have 1000+ which will be good for what i plan on doing with the colony this fall[which no-one knows about]
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)