Red Wiggler Egg Cocoons

Worm Compost
Originally uploaded by wonderworman

Now that the weather is warmer in Bend, I have been noticing many egg cocoons. The worms are becoming more active and therefore mating a bunch more. They leave behind a golden tear shaped cocoon. It almost looks like a seed (see photo). The color of the cocoon will change as the baby worms develop. Right before they hatch, the cocoon will be a deep red almost maroon color. Inside, there are about 5-10 babies ready to feed on the kitchen scraps. It takes about 3 weeks for the babies to emerge. Once they have hatched, it takes about 8 weeks for them to be an adult worm and the mating process will begin again.