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silkworms
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helpful hints / information |
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Eggs (Nature Education Centre) Small boxes, Margarine containers - lids are not necessary An adequate supply of Mulberry leaves Matchboxes, egg cartons, paper cones or sticks for them to spin their cocoonsSomething to unwind the silk later on -reels, cardboard, Lego or... Books,
charts, sites on silkworms |
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| Eggs/ Babies | The eggs turn dark grey/ black prior to hatching. As eggs hatch place a few small Mulberry leaves near the babies. After a few days the babies can be gently transferred to fresh leaves with a fine paintbrush. |
| Larger Silkworms | Growth is rapid and the worms moult several times. Fresh leaves are needed daily. Every couple of days old leaves need to be removed and replaced with a bed of fresh ones. Boxes also need to be cleaned of droppings to prevent disease. It is easier to transfer the worms into a different box each time. |
| Spinning | When the silkworms are quite large they will begin to search out places to spin. As they stop eating, they can be transferred into a clean box with sliced toilet rolls. They will spin inside the rolls or in corners of the boxes. |
| Moths | The
moths do not eat or fly. The males will flutter when they smell a
female and gravitate towards her. Mating takes place and the female will
lay eggs on the floor of the box or on slices of toilet rolls or anything
else you put in there. Once the eggs have been laid, death occurs
in the space of a few days. |
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