I don’t like jumbos,if I’m fishing gills,the smaller mealworms are perfect,they also work well in tipping jigs for larger fish.The secret to having a good supply of usable worms year round is to take out a couple hundred worms from your brood,put them in a container with a bit of bedding,and place them in the fridge.
After a month put them back in with the brood,this put them dormant ,thus slowing the cycle down.By slowing the cycle you always have a good supply of beetles,to lay eggs,I do this about 4 times a year.I recently allowed my original 10 year old start to die off ,I will be starting a new 3 tier brood box with fresh worms,for no reason other than I enjoy tinkering with them.
I think the pupa work even better than the mealworms. I guess I'm the only one doing this, because I have never heard of anyone using the pupa instead of the mealworms.They only last for one fish, but their texture is perfect, because they stay on well for the cast ,but they are so soft that its like biting down on a bare hook.
Not getting many beetles lately . To cool in shop maybe ?
they do thrive in temps around 80°.You need to take a rough inventory of beetles,pupa,and larva.if your not seeing a balance,something is outta whack in their cycle.It could very well be temperature,or beetles eating eggs,you should see some light brown ( new beetles ) along with older black beetles.
A healthy Colony should have light and dark beetles,larva of different age,and enough pupa turning to beetles.
Don't toss the castings (insect frass)!! Add it to your garden or mix with potting soil - helps protect your plants from defends against fungal pathogens in the root zone (root rot) and root-feeding nematodes, early and late blight, grey mold, powdery mildew and bugs. I even feed some to my worms....
Yes...they like it warm 75-80 F you can put a heating mat under your container.
Amazon.com : Zoo Med ReptiTherm Under Tank Heater, Small : Pet Habitat Heat Emitters : Pet Supplies