Light

Most species of insects and mites can be reared under ordinary lighting conditions; however, artificial manipulation of the light period will control diapause in many species. If the light requirements of the species being reared are known, it may be possible to adjust the period of light so that the specimens will continue to develop and will remain active instead of entering diapause, for example, providing 8-10 hours of light as opposed to 16 hours. Light and dark periods can be regulated with a 24-hour timing switch or clock timer. The timer is set to regulate light and dark periods to correspond with the desired lengths of light and darkness. It is important to remember that many insects and mites are very sensitive to light; sometimes even a slight disturbance of the photoperiod can disrupt their development.