dorcus parallelus

[Phil Kuhns]

So today while scavaging the woods behind my hows I managed to acquire 3 dorcus parallelus grubs. Never had much interest in the species but I figured I could just experiment in trying to raise them. because the rotten log I found them lodged in was 70% termite/millipede/other stupid stuff infested (it surprised me to find them alive), It was hard to acquire large enough chunks of the same log to try to keep the grubs in (my initial intent being to keep them in what i found them in so they could mature naturally and so I would have to worry about caring for then incorrectly).

However, I decided to bring the grubs and best pieces of the log to my home where I thoroughly microwaved the chunks of wood and pounded them to a very fine consistency. I then poured said substrate into a 32oz plastic container and used a mallet to compact it as much as possible. finally, I poked 3 holes in the packed wood all the way to the bottom, put the grubs in the holes, and put the lid on

No idea about whats going to happen but Id like some feedback about my method and even more so, some suggestions about how to do this successfully.

looks something like this

 

[Oak]

the container is too small unless they are L1

 

[Phil Kuhns]

the container is too small unless they are L1

well I can say the container is bigger than it looks in the picture I dont know anything about dorcus p. so idk what instar they are but they are pretty small (about 3/4 of an inch stretched out). not really in the mood to dig them up and photograph them at present

 

[Lucanus]

That setting looks fine to me except that you might need to place only one larva in each of those containers. I know what container this is and the size of it and this container isn't quite ideal for keeping three larvae at onece even thought the species you have is very small.

 

[hardshell]

i soak my log in the water for a day to kil all the spider, centipedes, slugs for my termite colony

 

[jreidsma]

I'm sorry, but I love the description of this thread "don't know what I'm doing

" lol, cracks me up every time.

I have heard and am trying this, to help kill any fungi or pest boil some water and soak the wood in it for a while. Then take it out and allow to dry. I put the wood in throw-away pans like used for roast or ovens. Then pour the boiling water over the wood. Then once it cools down enough to take out of the water do it and let it air dry for a while.

I would put one larva a piece in those containers.

 

[Lucanus]

Were you able to raise these larvae into adulthood?