Mealworms not eating and inactive

[Agathe]

I assume some of you breed mealworms for your chickens, so I’m hoping for some advice as I recently started myself. My mealworms don’t seem to be interested in any food I give them and seem fairly inactive. I’ve had them for about a week. I’m wondering if maybe it is because they are turning into pupas because a lot of them have. They are in rolled oats for bedding and for food I’ve given them broccoli stems, carrots and salad. Big pieces or grated doesn’t seem to make a difference. They are in room temperature in a clear plastic box in a dimly lit area. I have beetles too and they are super active. I’ve put the pupas in a separate container.

Should I be worried and is there anything I can do for them?

 

[Perris]

typically they adopt a C shape just before they morph into pupae. Do you see that?

 

[Agathe]

typically they adopt a C shape just before they morph into pupae. Do you see that?

Yes, they are mostly c shaped but not super curved, slightly bent. I think about half of the 100 I started with have turned into pupas, but some have been inactive for a whole week before they did.

 

[Perris]

So maybe they're just changing slowly. Temperature affects it (hotter faster, cooler slower).

Is there a sort of sand in the bottom of the container they're in? (Fras, their poo; it would indicate that they're eating OK) The rolled oats will be food as well as bedding, and if it's nutrient depleted that would slow them down too.

 

[Agathe]

So maybe they're just changing slowly. Temperature affects it (hotter faster, cooler slower).

Is there a sort of sand in the bottom of the container they're in? (Fras, their poo; it would indicate that they're eating OK) The rolled oats will be food as well as bedding, and if it's nutrient depleted that would slow them down too.

I put them into a new and bigger container yesterday and didn't really notice the fras. Now there is so much new bedding that it would be futile to check for it, but I'll keep an eye on it! It has been on the cooler side in our house lately so maybe that's it. At first I thought it was their journey that had been cold so they needed time to readjust, but I'd think they'd done that by now. They were sent in the mail and the postal service had misplaced the package so it took a little longer than it should. But they all appeared to be alive when they arrived.

Thank you for taking the time to reply!