The breeding and preservation of silkworm eggs
Silkworm breeding and silkworm rearing are two interrelated yet distinct phases in the work of silkworm breed management. Silkworm breeding is, in essence, the ongoing process of developing and improving silkworm strains. Its primary objective is to integrate existing silkworm varieties and newly developed breeds into the breeding program in accordance with the demands of cocoon production, thereby providing high-quality silkworms to meet the needs of rural cocoon-rearing operations and ensuring that the breeding environment at all levels of silkworm rearing remains stable and conducive to maintaining the genetic integrity of the target strains.
The selection and promotion of superior silkworm strains is merely a prerequisite for comprehensive measures to increase silkworm cocoon production; it also requires the coordinated implementation of other breeding and management practices. Therefore, during the breeding process, it is essential to ensure high-quality feed, maintain a hygienic rearing environment, and rigorously select for a suite of traits that fully exploit the potential of these superior strains. Given the interrelationships among these traits, even the best silkworm varieties may fail to achieve optimal performance unless they are accurately evaluated. Moreover, as the socio-economic landscape evolves and consumer demands shift, there is a need for superior silkworm varieties with distinct trait profiles at different stages of development.
After silkworm eggs are laid, they hatch in the spring of the following year. Spring sowing requires about 10 months, while autumn sowing takes approximately 6 months. During this period, all physiological activities within the eggs are influenced by external environmental conditions. Even if high-quality silkworm eggs are obtained during seed production, improper storage can compromise their quality, leading to increased mortality or degeneration of the eggs, uneven embryonic development, poor hatching, weak larval bodies, and reduced vitality. Therefore, dedicated personnel must be assigned to oversee egg storage, with round-the-clock on-duty staff who regularly monitor indoor and outdoor temperatures, maintain appropriate temperature and humidity levels, and implement effective measures to prevent insect infestation, rodent damage, and mold growth. The key to successful silkworm egg preservation is ensuring that the eggs’ diapause period—and the cumulative number of days following diapause during cold storage—exceeds the interval between egg-laying and the next year’s harvest, thereby guaranteeing uniform hatching for production and producing high-quality silkworm eggs with healthy larval bodies.
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