In order to investigate a low-cost and sustainable food source, the present study evaluated the use of poultry litter for rearing Tenebrio molitor Linnaeus, 1758 (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae). The experiment was performed with five diets containing increasing levels of poultry litter (0, 25, 50, 75, and 100%) replacing the control diet and five replicates with 50 larvae per sample unit. Larval growth and development were evaluated and the chemical compositions of diet and T. molitor larvae were determined. Larval development and reproduction efficiency of T. molitor were similar in all treatments. The sole use of poultry litter to feed T. molitor reduced the crude protein of flour by only 8%. Including 50% or more poultry litter in the standard diet is the best-suited formulation for larvae production and incorporation of minerals in the larvae. Mealworm can be grown successfully on diets composed by poultry litter, the diet did not affect survival, growth, and development; however, studies spanning several insect generations should be performed to determine the effects of diet composition on adult fecundity. The knowledge acquired using poultry litter to feed T. molitor will be useful to carry out new research, in addition to evidencing the possibility of low-cost mass rearing of these larvae.

中文翻译：

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黄粉虫（鞘翅目：黄粉虫科）在家禽垫料日粮中的开发：对幼虫化学成分的影响

为了调查低成本和可持续的食物来源，本研究评估了使用家禽垫料饲养黄粉虱Linnaeus，1758 年（鞘翅目：黄粉虫科）。该实验是用含有增加水平的家禽垫料（0、25、50、75 和 100%）的五种日粮代替对照日粮进行的，并且每个样品单位有 50 只幼虫进行五次重复。评估了幼虫的生长和发育，并确定了饮食和黑粉虱幼虫的化学成分。T. molitor 的幼虫发育和繁殖效率在所有处理中相似。仅使用家禽垫料喂养黑麦草面粉的粗蛋白仅降低了 8%。在标准日粮中加入 50% 或更多的家禽垫料是最适合幼虫生产和将矿物质掺入幼虫的配方。黄粉虫可以在家禽垫料组成的饲料中成功生长，该饲料不影响存活、生长和发育；然而，应该进行跨越几代昆虫的研究，以确定饮食成分对成虫繁殖力的影响。除了证明低成本大规模饲养这些幼虫的可能性之外，使用家禽垫料喂养黄粉虱所获得的知识将有助于开展新的研究。