WORLD AQUACULTURE 45 with soil to minimize infestation by mites or small flying insects. Feed levels could be monitored simply by viewing the underside of the clear container and replenishing feed when necessary. Worms were easily harvested by placing the rearing container on a heat source, such as a heating pad (Fig.1). A small mound of rearing soil was made adjacent to the side of the container and, over the course of 1-2 hours, the thermophobic white worms migrated to the surface and even up the sides of the plastic container, where they were easily and cleanly harvested. Use as a Live Feed and in Formulated Aquafeeds White worms have a high protein (75 percent) and lipid (15 percent) content with relatively low levels of ash (6 percent, Walsh 2012). White worms are a good source of n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, though the DHA content may be limiting (CONTINUED ON PAGE 46) FIGURE 1. Small-scale white worm harvest procedures at the University of New Hampshire. Thermophobic worms progressively move to the surface and up the sides of the container (a-d) after being placed on a heat source, in this case, a heating pad (e). Worms are then easily and cleanly collected from the surface (f). Photos: M.Walsh. FIGURE 2. Percent fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) composition of white worms. Analyses conducted for M. Walsh by J. Trushenski of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.
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