Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just bought 1000 zophobas superworms. I'm keeping them in a plastic Sterlite container with a couple of inches of oatmeal in it. I've had them less than a week, about about 3/4 of them have already turned black and died. They are being kept at room temp. I gave them a few apple slices one day, along with some lettuce, but other than that they've just had oatmeal. What did I do wrong?

Oatmeal=not really a good food by itself for them.... Bran meal or corn meal would have been better. Personally I use a mixture of powdered milk, ground up dog kibble, sunflower seeds, rabbit pellets, instant potatoes and whatever stale non-sweetened cereal I have on hand. I've not lost one since I changed to this mixture.. and I've got a growing population of beetles to breed for me.

Did they have a constant source of moisture in the container, and was there some form of ventilation? If the answer to either of those questions is 'no', that may be the problem.

A few apple slices is good for moisture, but they MUST have a source all the time.

i use oats mixed with baby ceral and fish food flacks. i cut a potatoe in half and put both halfs on top of the mixture. i change the potatoe every few days haven't lost any and i've had them like this for a few months. just make sure there dead be fore you throw them out because mine do the same thing turn black like color and dont move. so i took them out because i thought they were dead and put them i a little cup and in a day or so they had shed there skin and were alive. so just make sure there dead.i think they do this before they shed i'm not sure just what i think. now i just leave them in with the rest of them hope this helps