Microworms/Walterworms/Banana Worms are another of my favorite live foods.
There are several methods which can be used, and most will work very well. I have had the best success using instant potato for the culture medium. There are many other ingredients that will work, but I had the least amount of mold problems with this medium.
I’ve used small tupperware containers up to large plastic shoe boxes with good success. Which works best for you will be determined by how many worms you need.
I start a culture by adding approximately equal amounts of medium and water to my container. After less than a minute the medium is relatively stable and worms may be added from an existing culture. I then lightly coat the surface of the medium with live yeast (same as for bread making), and I can usually start to see worms crawling up the side of the container within 24-48 hours.
Walterworms
Cultures can harvested with a finger or spatula starting at one week. I usually start a new culture every week or two so I have several going at once. Cultures typically last up to 4 weeks.
From the information I’ve heard, there are no truly pure cultures of these worms, so it probably doesn’t matter which type you start with.
The worms will slowly settle after feedings o don’t expect to feed mid to surface feeding fry for long periods of time after a feeding. Unless you do have other fish in the tank that will eat what falls to the bottom, feed very carefully. The worms are probably not a real good exclusive food. They are best fed in conjunction with other types of fry food (powder, frozen, live, etc.).
Larger fish will also eat these worms, so it is worth experimenting to see which of your fish will like them.
Dear Denny,
Hope you are doing well.
Thank you for sharing this information.
Please I will like to use your microworm image.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Cheers,
Roland