Automated Liquid feeding systems for Insect larvaE tray and rack systems
VSI IR-401 Automatic tray feeding station for liquids. The requirement for efficient mosquito mass rearing technology has been one of the major obstacles preventing the large scale application of the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) against mosquitoes. Balestrino et al. (2012, 2014) developed and tested a larval rearing unit (tray and rack system) able to successfully rear hundred thousands of Anopheles arabiensis adult mosquitoes per rack. However, while the amount of labor to operate the rack is relatively low, daily application of the liquid feeding solutions to larvae requires still considerable time. To make the rearing process cost-efficient, and to standardize liquid feed apllication, Vienna Scientific Instruments developed the VSI IR-401 automated tray feeding station for the established FAO/IAEA-style tray and rack system for insect larval rearing in medium-sized facilities. Our feeding station is designed to deliver precise and consistent amounts of liquid food to the larvae, reducing the labour required for feeding and minimising the risk of human error or contamination. The feeding station can be customized with moderate efforts to fit other liquid feeding applications for tray and rack systems.
VSI IR-401 Automatic Larvae Tray Feeding Station - Specifications
The larvae feeder IR-401 for mass rearing racks consist of three subsystems:
- regulating up and down motion for the exact fit of the nozzle system, which inject the feed mixture, including an automated measuring system to adjust the position between trays,
- fully automated injection system, driven by micro-step motors, with an automated retracting and extending system, and
- agitator for the feed mixture, with an abstract volume of 50 litres and the pumping system for the injection.
While the feeding process per rack is fully automated, the feeding station can be easily moved (on 4 wheels) and positioned in front of another rack of the same dimension to continue the feeding process. The versatility of the IR-401 system in mass rearing facilities has been tested and acknowledged by IAEA publications, e.g. "Recent improvements in the equipment necessary for easy handling (automation of the larval rack and addition of a feeding station) have greatly reduced the time, labor, space, and costs associated with rearing large numbers of mosquitoes" (Mamai et al., 2018). In summary, the IR-401 feeder allows precise and consistent amounts of liquid feed to be delivered to the larvae, significantly reducing the labour required for feeding (only moving the feeder between trays and racks is required, as well as replenishing feed in large facilities) and minimising the risk of human error and tray contamination (as the feeder does not touch any tray - preventing the spread of contamination/disease between trays and racks). Please contact us for more information and if you are looking for a specific liquid feed solution for your (future) insect rearing facility.
VSI IR-401 Automated Liquid feeding station For Insect tray & Rack Systems
Images for illustration purposes only, design subject to change without notice
Working Principle of the Automatic Liquid Feeding System for Insect Tray and RAck Systems
Automatic Liquid Feed Dispension to Insects - Customization Options
With insect-based feeds already approved for pet food and aquaculture, becoming an effective and environmentally friendly on-site protein source for the animal feeds of the future, and a growing interest in supplementing human diets, the application of VSI's innovative larval liquid feeding technology to other liquid feeding systems for insect rearing should be feasible with reasonable effort. If you are involved in insect rearing systems, VSI can help increase the efficiency and standardisation of your feed application by developing new or adapted feeding solutions to suit your insect mass rearing and production facilities. Contact us to discuss custom-made solutions for your liquid insect feed application.
Selected readings on mosquito mass rearing and feeding / Dietary Requirements
- Balestrino, F., M. Q. Benedict, and J. R. L. Gilles. 2012. A New Larval Tray and Rack System for Improved Mosquito Mass Rearing. Journal of Medical Entomology 49:595-605.
- Balestrino, F., A. Puggioli, J. R. L. Gilles, and R. Bellini. 2014. Validation of a New Larval Rearing Unit for Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) Mass Rearing. PLoS ONE 9:e91914.
- Benedict, M. Q., B. G. Knols, H. C. Bossin, P. I. Howell, E. Mialhe, C. Caceres, and A. S. Robinson. 2009. Colonisation and mass rearing: learning from others. Malaria journal 8:1.
- Bond, J. G., Ramírez-Osorio, A., Marina, C. F., Fernández-Salas, I., Liedo, P., Dor, A., & Williams, T. (2017). Efficiency of two larval diets for mass-rearing of the mosquito Aedes aegypti. PLoS One, 12(11), e0187420.
- Feldmann, A., W. Brouwer, J. Meeussen, and J. O. Voshaar. 1989. Rearing of larvae of Anopheles stephensi, using water replacement, purification and automated feeding. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 52:57-68.
- Kavran, M., Puggioli, A., Šiljegović, S., Čanadžić, D., Laćarac, N., Rakita, M., ... and Bellini, R. (2022). Optimization of Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) Mass Rearing through Cost-Effective Larval Feeding. Insects, 13(6), 504.
- Mamai, W., et al. 2018. Optimization of mass-rearing methods for Anopheles arabiensis larval stages: effects of rearing water temperature and larval density on mosquito life-history traits. Journal of Economic Entomology 111(5): 2383-2390.
- Sasmita, H. I., Tu, W. C., Bong, L. J., & Neoh, K. B. (2019). Effects of larval diets and temperature regimes on life history traits, energy reserves and temperature tolerance of male Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae): optimizing rearing techniques for the sterile insect programmes. Parasites & vectors, 12(1), 1-16.
- Van Schoor, T., Kelly, E. T., Tam, N., & Attardo, G. M. (2020). Impacts of dietary nutritional composition on larval development and adult body composition in the yellow fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti). Insects, 11(8), 535.
- Wang, Y., Eum, J. H., Harrison, R. E., Valzania, L., Yang, X., Johnson, J. A., ... and Strand, M. R. (2021). Riboflavin instability is a key factor underlying the requirement of a gut microbiota for mosquito development. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(15), e2101080118.
- Williges, E., A. Farajollahi, J. J. Scott, L. J. Mccuiston, W. J. Crans, and R. Gaugler. 2008. Laboratory colonization of Aedes japonicus japonicus. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 24:591-593.