Help with hatching pupa

[beginner entomologist]

Hi everyone,

I got some fly pupa last Wednesday and I've been incubating them in a glass jar with a screen top at about 85 degrees during the day and 70-75 at night. For some reason they won't hatch! Is this set up a proper way to hatch house flies?

To keep my little mantid buddies alive I turn my outside light on at night and I have managed to get some little flying bugs for them.

Any tips will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Rick]

I just stick them in a 32 oz insect cup (same type used for mantis) and let em be. If they arrive to me as pupa they take a few days. If I start them as spikes they take about a week longer.

 

[beginner entomologist]

Will they hatch at 70 degrees?

 

[Rick]

Will they hatch at 70 degrees?

They should. Just might take a little longer.

 

[Katnapper]

What you're doing sounds fine. Might just take a few more days... and if they don't hatch in about another week, they might be dead. I'd be patient and wait. Maybe put the enclosure under a lamp to warm them, but I wouldn't go much over 85 F. degrees. Good luck!

 

[Mantibama]

I'm partial to blue bottles myself. I don't know if it's my room temperature (68-70) or BB's are just a heartier species, but the hatch rates are so much better and I don't have to feed as much. Also, I was personally surprised that some mantids that I thought were too small could actually tackle BB's, so you may want to try those. Maybe maggots might be a better approach for houseflies because at least you'll know they are alive on arrival, though I haven't tried myself. What species do you have?