dog food for larvae

[hardshell]

im planning to buy some dog food for almost hatched granti eggs... is it better to burry them then on top of the soil?, can i leave the left overs to decay?, and how often should i feed them??? my dad might buy me an oak tree in my backyard for christmas... can i add rotten branches and leaves instead for dog food? which one will work better? thank you-hardshell

 

[Jordan]

I'd say put it on top of the soil. My experience with dog food isn't great. I tried it once and it grew mold extremely quickly. If you bury it you won't see the mold and it will be more of a hassle to maintain. Try not to leave left overs as they will also mold. As far as how often you should supply the dog food I would say just change it out as soon as you see mold.

My guess is this oak tree will be very young. A young, transportable tree would likely not have the resources as this point. The branches would be extremely small and fresh. It would take months to years for the branches to get rotten enough. The leave would also take at least a few weeks after falling from the tree, given the tree is even large enough to produce a large quantity of leaves.

The idea of having an oak tree placed in your backyard makes me wonder what you are going to feed the larvae with? Do you already have rotten wood and leaf litter? Placing them in soil or dirt alone while only trying to use dog food as the food source would surely lead to starvation.

Jordan

 

[Matt]

I'd not be in a hurry to try to feed L1 larvae dog food or any other supplement. Even L3 larvae are only going to be eating 1 or 2 small bits over the course of several weeks. Dog food is more of a "bonus" protein source for the larvae than a big component of the substrate. It is very easy to add too much dog food to a tank and suffer problems with mites or mould. I would wait until the larvae are L3 before trying with 1 or 2 small bits of dog food buried at the bottom of the container, but keep an eye on them to make sure they are being eaten.

I'd agree with Jordan regarding the backyard oak tree - you would be talking years before you could get anytyhing worthwhile of of a newly planted tree.

 

[Jordan]

L1 and L2 are the most beneficial times for feeding. Yes, the protein would help at L3 also but I think if it was done earlier it would be more beneficial and yield larger imago. Placing it at the bottom probably would increase the chances of it being eaten but even in that case I think it would mold or cause mites before it was completely eaten. Placing it at the bottom also leads to disturbing the larvae very often by dumping it out to put the dog food in and then doing it again about a week later to change it out.