What happened to my mealworms?

[Neonetic]

I'm not sure if I got this right, but I fed some mealworms a sample of some high calcium local vegetables, kailan and endives, hours later, they were curled up in a C shape and have remained still ever since, though they seem to still be alive.

I will test another portion of this mixture on some small lobster roaches.

Bad batch? Calcium poisoning?

Anyone knows what happened? So much for gutloading.

 

[FrogEyes]

Probably pupating, or at least shedding as they grow, but I'd bet on the former.

"kailan" = kale? [ie, cabbage by another name, as so many vegetables are]

 

[esn]

I have mealworm colonies, and it sounds like they're pupating. The C shape is a sure sign of it. They lie out flat when they're dying. If they ate the food, it's not because of that. You can force them to pupate by starving them, but they'll pupate sooner or later anyway because of their growth cycle. They were just ready to pupate, that's all. There is nothing wrong with kale as a food source. I'm not nearly so careful with my feeding. I usually feed the fibrous stems of kale and collard greens to my colonies, as well as carrots and oat bran.

Mealworms pupate very easily, even when you don't want them to. That's why mealworm colonies are so easy to start.