Incubating Pupa

We have finally obtained an incubator and are now incubating our pupa to hasten eclosions.

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are asWell, this probably would have been much more useful to have a month or two ago when we first began taking our pupa out of cold storage back in February, but we have finally received an incubator to warm them up. This is the type of incubator used for hatching chicken eggs and can get quick hot (100°F is normal for those eggs), though we don't need it nearly as hot for our pupa since such temperatures would fry them. The incubator also allows you to monitor and adjust the humidity with the water tray at the bottom.

So far, we have set the temperature to around 75 or 80°F and are trying to keep the humidity at around 70%, though it fluctuates rapidly if the incubator is opened or if water is added. We have placed all the post-diapausing pupa we currently have (Hyalophora cecropia, Pachysphinx modesta, Eacles imperialis, Antheraea polyphemus, Eumorpha achemon, Hyles lineata, Papilio zelicaon, and Battus philenor hirsuta) inside. All the Saturniids and Sphingids were taken out weeks to months ago (over two months for cecropia, the earliest) and none of them have even showed the slightest bit of development due to the cool room temperature at this time of year (50s or 60s, almost never hitting 70). Thus, they would take far too long to eclose at this rate. We had planned the have the cecropias out right when the apple trees began growing leaves, but its already been weeks since they trees have begun growing. Hopefully with a constant warm temperature in the incubator, things will actually start eclosing within the next few week and we can began rearing them.

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​Authors
Alan Liang

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