“Found these worms in the backyard and there are a lot!” exclaims this reader in his submission regarding the segmented, yellow worm-like critter pictured below. “I have a small garden there with an orange tree, but the garden is unattended. What are those? They seem to be active in the night and light attracts them I think.” Based on the excellent photo our reader sent in, as well as the helpful context, we would conclude that these are mealworms. Mealworms are the larval stage of the mealworm beetle, which is a species of darkling beetle. As our reader correctly stated, mealworms are nocturnal, and while they are not necessarily attracted to light, they can sense it.
As their name suggests, mealworms love a good meal, and they eat a variety of plants, such as potatoes, seeds, grains, and fruits. If it were not for our reader mentioning the orange tree in his garden, we do not think we would have come to this conclusion as quickly as we did. We think it is this orange tree which is attracting the mealworms to our reader’s backyard, and we suggest he check his oranges for signs of them. Mealworms are considered pests, but usually in the context of eating people’s stored grains, and are not known to be that big of a nuisance in the garden. Of course, our reader may still wish to invest in some mesh bug nets to put around the base of his tree if he wants to protect it from mealworms and other, nastier pests.
Some more fun facts about mealworms: A lot of people use them in their compost bins, as they can efficiently break down rotting organic matter, especially since they reproduce so quickly. A female mealworm beetle will lay up to 500 eggs in her lifetime. Even more incredibly, mealworms can break down polystyrene (AKA styrofoam) into usable, organic matter! Why this method is not being used more commonly to recycle styrofoam is a mystery to us. On top of all this, mealworms are edible and are often used as pet food, though humans can safely consume them too.
To conclude, the yellow worms our reader found in his yard are mealworms. They are not harmful to humans or pets, so he needs not worry about that. Despite that, they are considered pests. We hope this article proves informative for our reader, and we wish him the very best!
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