questions for ppl who breed crickets as feeders?

[ruru]

so iv been trying to breed crickets. i have eveything set up etc. im at the part where the crickets have laid tons & tons of eggs, i have them in a clear container with coconut fiber as substrate so i can see the eggs where they were laid at the edges of the container iv been spraying them with warm water every other day & have a clamp lamp set above for heat...iv been doing this for about 2 weeks now i can still see the eggs. how long does it take for them to hatch? will i be able to see them when they do? or am did i mess something up some how? lol iv read they hatch after 7-10 days and i dont see any changes?

 

[chamlove]

Did you take the container with the substrate out of the container that you have the crickets in? I know that the males will eat the eggs if you dont take them out.

 

[ruru]

yes i have all adults in a 10 gal seperate from the eggs is there a certain temp to keep the eggs at? or how damp to keep them? i dont keep the substrate saturated i keep it just damp/moist

 

[greenguy420]

i heard of more people using heat pads instead of the bulbs, makes sense since the pads dont tend to over heat like the bulbs do.
Plus not only that but your going to have problems keeping the temp steady with a bulb since its out in the open

 

[reptoman]

How warm are the eggs being kept? If you keep them in a tub inside the house in the low to mid 70s it will take a couple of weeks to hatch. If you keep them around 85-90 it will take about 4-5 days. Once they hatch you will see tiny pinhead encrusting the edge of the container.

 

[jdog1027]

The hotter the better- 85-90F will take about a week or less. When they hatch, you'll have no doubt- There will be 1000s.

 

[ruru]

so i just checked on the & a see a couple little baby crickets running around any advice on how 2 feed them & keeping them alive? when they all hatch do i still keep heat on them for a couple weeks until the get bigger?

 

[greenguy420]

throw some greens or sliced carrots, or the store bought food but im not sure on that since they are babies, as the heat im not sure really i work at a pet store and we dont keep them on heaters

 

[ruru]

i have shreded carrots && really thin slices of apples in there right now ....anybody know what 2 do? any advice or ideas?

 

[greenguy420]

your set there, there just going to eat and grow bigger, good with the apple thats a source of water too.

 

[ruru]

thank! im seeing even more today...i still have heat on them for the eggs that havent hatched yet... is there a certain reason some of the pinheads are white & some are dark?

 

[Goggles]

When a cricket or roach molts(sheds it's skin) it will be white.

 

[ruru]

molting only after 24 hrs of being hatched??
amazing
cant wait for them to get bigger lol they will be so much easier to t.c. of.
how do i go about cleaning there cage?

 

[Goggles]

In this case they could hatch white and darken as they age. I have never bred crickets though.

 

[ruru]

oh ohkay lol makes sense then

 

[Symbiot]

I'm currently trying to breed crickets myself. I failed the first time, but this second time seems to be going along better. So far I've had the cup of soil in their enclosure for one day and I can already see what looks like little eggs in the soil. Hopefully, I get it right this time! This will save me a ton on food, especially now that I plan on getting a little panther chameleon as well. Keep us updated on how you cricket breeding project goes.

 

[hondataeg6]

I myself am trying to breed my own crickets.. Kept them in a container with coco fiber or husk int he bottom of the cintainer for about a week but I cant see any eggs. I kept the substance damp but i see no eggs or I dont know what I am looking at... can you guys post pictures of what the eggs look like???


Thanks...

 

[ruru]

simbiot- everything is going great so far!! more & more keep popping out by the minute
fast little buggers lol
hondataeg6- i dont think my camera is hight tech enough to take pictures of something so small but i will however find you a picture of what they look like pretty much like little grains of rice do...if you have eggs you can use ur finger & gently move a little patch of dirt & you should see little white rice shaped cricket eggs spread throughout.

 

[ruru]

photo of cricket egg




here are a couple pictures so you have some idea of what you are looking for

 

[ruru]

one more photo & a very informational link


http://skylab.org/~chugga/cricket/