There, they are commonly found in food markets and sold as street food alongside other edible insects. Mealworms have historically been consumed in many Asian countries, particularly in Southeast Asia. Mealworms are edible for humans, and processed into several insect food items available in food retail such as insect burgers. Records from the British Isles and northern Europe are from a later date, and mealworms are conspicuously absent from archaeological finds from ancient Egypt. The oldest archaeological records of mealworms can be traced to Bronze Age Turkey. Mealworms probably originated in the Mediterranean region, but are now present in many areas of the world as a result of human trade and colonization. Mealworms have generally been considered pests, because they feed on stored grains. Its relatively large size, ease of rearing and handling, and status as a non- model organism make it useful in proof of concept studies in the fields of basic biology, biochemistry, evolution, immunology and physiology. Tenebrio molitor is often used for biological research. The reduction of male signaling capability may be due to increased expression of homozygous deleterious recessive alleles caused by inbreeding.
Females are more attracted to the odors produced by outbred males than the odors produced by inbred males. Inbreeding reduces the attractiveness of sexual pheromone signaling by male mealworms. Sex pheromonesĪ sex pheromone released by male mealworms has been identified. After 3 to 30 days, depending on environmental conditions such as temperature, it emerges as an adult beetle. The new pupa is whitish and turns brown over time. ĭuring the larval stage, the mealworms feed on vegetation and dead insects and molt between each larval stage, or instar (9 to 20 instars). Over her lifespan, a female will, on average, lay about 500 eggs. Within a few days the female burrows into soft ground and lays eggs. Males insert sperm packets with their aedeagus. Tenebrio molitor larvae eating an apple slice
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