INTRODUCTIONGROUP LEADER : Shreyas.BGROUP MEMBERS : Dhaval , Shruti , Deepak , Surabhi .

• Silk is a natural protein fiber.

• The best known type of silk is obtained from cocoons of the

• Larvae of a mulberry silkworm reared in captivity .

Silk fibers are spun by the silk worms . The rearing of silk worms for obtaining silk is called Sericulture. Silk worms are fed on mulberry leaves.

The silk worm larval life is divided into five instars, separated by four molts. Four distinct stages of development complete one generation of the species; ova, larvae, pupa and imago.

Newly laid eggs are a creamy yellow, after a few days the fertile live eggs will be gray.

Keep the eggs cool.

Eggs must be placed in the fridge as soon as it starts to warm up for spring.

Do not freeze the eggs, keep them in the warmest part of the fridge.

The silkworm eggs will hatch 2 weeks after you remove them from the fridge .

After four days the first molt will occur.

After hatching the tiny larvae grow the best if they are fed on the new soft leaves of the mulberry tree.

Switch over to larger leaves as they grow.

The silkworms(larvae) do nothing but eat.

Keep them in a flat open box. They will not crawl away.

Simply place leaves in the container and place the silkworms on the leaves. Keep them at room temperature, but not in direct sunlight.

If you have got many silkworms then it is best to make

wooden frames with a fine mesh grid at the bottom sothat the worm droppings and fine pieces of leaves canfall through.

Stand the frame in a tray to catch thedebris. Everything must be kept clean.

Transfer the tiny silkworms using a small paint brushthe first few days, older larvae can be gently picked upwith your hands onto a clean tray.

Give fresh leaves and remove half eaten leaves fromthe day before, every day.

The silkworm will spin a silk cocoon as protection for the pupa. Cocoons are shades of white, cream and yellow. The glistening shine of the silk gives an impression of silver and shades of gold. After a final molt inside the cocoon, the larva change into the brown pupa. Further changes inside the pupa result in an emerging moth

An adult silk moth emerges from the cocoon about twoweeks after completion. This is the adult stage of thesilkworm . The body of the moth is covered in short finehair and wings are creamy white with faint brownlines. Moths can not fly or consume nutrition. Females arelarger and less active than the males. Male moths moveabout beating their wings seeking females.If adults copulate in captivity, the female will lay eggswithin 24 hours. The female usually lies the eggs on thevertical side of the box or tray. Cover the whole surfacewith sheets of paper making it easier to remove the eggsfor storage.