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Dermestid Beetles

Yes, thay can be a pain in the arse. I have had my colony now for 2 years and sometimes it is great and other times it is a pain. I have no problem finding food for them but it is the other problems like humidity and mites that will get in to them if it is to wet.

I use a chest freezer with a red heat lamp and a thermostat set at 82 degrees, and a bathroom fan to keep the airflow going. I have never had any fly or climb up the side.

It ussually takes about 4 days for them to eat the head, and that is the easy part. To get the heads white it takes alot of degreasing and then you have to whiten them. I guess if you had the area and a heated building and alot of time to mess with them it would be alot easier of a hobby than what it is for myself.

Goodluck to everyone trying the beetles it is alot more fun in the begining than wants you get backed up 40 heads, I am a hunter to and I want my dang head back just as fast as the next guy.

Hoyt-R-Nothin
 
I actually have a colony of good god who knows how many beetles. They are a bit of a pain, but once you get the hang of it, and with the right equipment, it runs itself. I have a 42"X36X36" enclosure, full thermostat controlled heat set up w/ ceramics, etc. My colony has been up and running about 3 years now. They are in a heat and humidity controlled room in my garage made especially for them and to control the smell. Removing the brains will keep smell down also.

Hoyt is 110% right, the cleaning is the easy part, the bugs do the work...lol. The rest is the pain. In my opinion, if you dont have the proper set-up, save you $90.00 and pay someone to do it for you. Or freeze it and ship it to me...I only charge $75.00...lol...j/k

Oh and hello by the way, new to the board. Anyone needs any bug tips, or help for supplies, etc. feel free to contact me, always glad to help.

Frankie
Finishing Touch Skull Works
 
LOL...it depends on what is available, and the amount you are trying to whiten at a time. Before you whiten, you have to degrease which is where most of your time/labor is spent. Dilute some ammonia with water and float the skull. Be sure to dilute the ammonia enough that it wont be overly harsh and burn the nasal membranes, but dont go so far as to take away all of the degreasing power. (there is no exact science to this one...lol. You just learn to know after a while). The ammonia will begin to pull the grease/blood out of the bone (you will notice the water starting to yellow and haze)...Change the water/ammonia solution as needed until you basically get a clean mixture. Then you can begin to think about whitening. There are a few different methods you can go with, and I vary depending on what condition the bone is in, as some types are worse than others. I NEVER use bleach...big no no, breaks down the bone, and burns away the nasal membranes usually. There are chemicals you can use that are less harsh, and will whiten easily...but your entire whitening job is based on the degreasing. I have a friend that has me degrease them, and leaves them in the sun for weeks w/ the antlers wrapped in brown bags, they wont whiten like a museum skull, but they lighten up pretty well. Like I said...Pay someone the $65-$90 for the deer head...lol...its some work to say the least, even when you know what you are doing...lol.

Hope this helped some...

Frankie
 
He Frankie, we just started out colony and its going great, got the perfect setup for it to control the environment. We started with 1000-1200 beetles, wondering how long it usually takes a whitetail skull, just skinned and removed a little meat? We've had one in the tub for a week now and its made obvious progress but wondering what we can expect for how long to wait? We've got two more waiting..
 
I,m not Frankie but I might be able to help you. I would say with an order of 1200 beetles it is going to take probably 2 weeks. I think you might be able to speed up the process though by taking out the brains and eyeballs, it really isn't that difficult just take a knife and scramble the brains then take a piece of wire and bend it so you have a hook on it and start digging.
You will also notice a rapid growth in beetles by putting a large skull in like a deer, just make sure you have enough foam and bedding for the adults to ley their eggs.
 
Ummm...ditto to what hoyt has said. I would leave the brain in, it will cause the population to grow rather fast. It will however smell to high hell...you take the good with the bad. Keep a good eye on temp, and keep them hydrated, and you should be golden. My tank will average about 1-2 days on a single head w/o brains, etc. With 1000-2000 beetles, a week is possible as long as you have more larvae than adults, otherwise you may end up waiting for a hatch!! It is the smaller larvae that do most of the eating, and you will notice slower periods if you see more adults around. Give it a few weeks on the first one and let the colony grow and I bet heads 2 and 3 go pretty fast.

So anyone want to tell me about Albia, and what I can expect on a late muzzle loader hunt there in 09? I am psyched to go, already booked and chomping at the bit to get there...lol, only 12 months to go..haha. Can someone tell me restrictions on muzzle loaders for Iowa, as I have never been...can I use a Bad Bull Muzzle Loader (smokeless powder) or do I have to stay with more traditional equipment?

Frankie /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/tired.gif
 
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: BigBuckLuck10</div><div class="ubbcode-body">can I use a Bad Bull Muzzle Loader (smokeless powder) or do I have to stay with more traditional equipment?

Frankie /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/tired.gif </div></div>

You can use whatever you want as long as it is "muzzle loaded"
some guys even choose to use hand guns which is now legal, although there are some restrictions on hand guns I believe.

good luck in Albia, theres been some good bucks taken in that area, although anywhere in Iowa can produce giants given the right conditions.
 
handgun restrictions are minimum 4" barrel, .357 or larger, non-shouldered rounds (rifle rounds)
 
No, I will be sticking with the muzzy...although if I keep my .454 Casull that I have for sale in the classifieds here...hmmmmm...Nah I will stay with the muzzy.

Frankie
 
I got some beetles for the first time last winter and did quite a few deer skulls with them. I used a herpstat digital temp controller, water bed heater, and a ceramic heat emitter which allows total darkness in the box. A large plastic box, lightly insulated, from walmart is used for the enclosure. I put it in an unheated shed without problems all winter. I lost them in the summer when I put road kill in and forgot to freeze it first to kill the parasites. I am still money ahead over having someone else do it for me. I have a couple thousand more coming for this years harvest.
 
Yeah thats why I dont feed roadkill. I have an in at a local butcher, so I get scraps and spines, etc. Either that, or really cheap canned dog food, like .50cents a can crap. I also buy a lot of heads from trappers. Skunks, Fox, whatever...good for food, and then you can ebay the skulls to recoup some money after the fact. I have also been known to whack the local squirrel population down in the ff season for fresh food. All that beats picking up nasty road kill and risking the colony. I store it all in a stand up freezer, and feed when I need too.

Frankie
 
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