Think I discovered something

[Eclipse]

So I've been breeding mealworms and you know how big they get before they pupate. Well I ran out of crickets so I decided to feed my leopard gecko a mealworm. It was a lively one barely a couple weeks old. It was still about half an inch long a scrawny little one. When I picked it up it waved around violently, desperate to escape. I threw him in a bag of calcium dust, shook it up a little and dropped him in the tank where he lied motionlessly. I thought it had died at first but I didn't care so I left it for my leopard gecko to finish it off.

After about a week, it was still there in the same spot covered in calcium dust. Then it occurred to me that this thing is dead. When I picked it up it started to wiggle a little and I was a little surprised so I put it back in for my leopard gecko. With the heat lamp on, it is well above 90F on one side of his enclosure. Without food or water and extreme heat, the poor little guy pupated after about a week and a half! It's now a little mini pupa about a half an inch long! Talk about adapting! He survived all odds.

I will leave the pupa there to see if it hatches or not.

 

[TalonAWD]

Mealworms will pupate when left completely alone. They will not pupate when there are other mealworms around. What you have there is a mealworm going through metamorphous (sp?) It has to be left in darkness completely alone and it will change into a beatle. A shiny black one.

 

[JC]

Mealworms will pupate when left completely alone. They will not pupate when there are other mealworms around. What you have there is a mealworm going through metamorphous (sp?) It has to be left in darkness completely alone and it will change into a beatle. A shiny black one.

I think this goes for superworms only, my mealworms pupate all the time will 1000+ in the containers.

 

[TalonAWD]

I think this goes for superworms only, my mealworms pupate all the time will 1000+ in the containers.

Oops thanks for the correction.

 

[Teal]

How long does it take them to turn into a beetle?

I have one that I have been watching in the corner of an enclosure.. I thought it was dead, but it keeps changing positition! It looks like the thing above, only mine is over an inch long and it's been that way for a few weeks.. I think it's slowly growing legs, but how long should it take?

 

[Eclipse]

Usually my mealworms turn into large thick pupa within 2-3 months at room temperature, but before that they can get really big and they're usually over an inch before they start to pupate. But this is is maybe around 2 to 4 weeks old and has already pupated. I just found it to be really interesting.

@Teal
If you mean slowly growing legs then you probably seen that the legs on the pupa has gotten darker. It shouldn't be too long before it hatches.

I think if mealworms are left alone they too can pupate at an early age. BUT most of the mealworms that I leave alone usually end up dying in the tank of the animal I'm feeding it too. This one is different.

 

[Travis K]

mealies stink too.