Development

My apologies to those who are of weak disposition. :) Meet the new Darkling Beetles.

These have developed very quickly. I kept a few in the warmth where they undergo their metamorphosis from mealworms to pupae and into beetles very quickly. Possibly a little too quickly. The ones I've kept in a cooler environment are mostly still mealworms or recently developed pupae.

The pupa one on the right is just about to hatch. You can see that it has now eyes and real legs. It will probably shed it's skin in the next couple of hours.

The middle one hatched recently, possibly within the past hour or so as the elytra, which are hard outer wings, are still soft. The last beetle on the left will have hatched within the past day or so as it is darkening but has a way to go before it is almost black and a mature beetle, ready to multiply.

Well that saved my bacon for a blip!