Anyone feed milkweed bugs?

[jamest0o0]

Was wondering if anyone used these. Saw them on Josh's frogs awhile back. Obviously the ones that have been switched off of milkweed as it's toxic.

 

[Longhorn1234]

Bump

 

[jamest0o0]

They look cool, would make for some nice variety...

 

[Longhorn1234]

They are cool indeed. I believe I read in an old thread that @JoeDigiorgio was raising them. Hopefully he can share his experience with us

 

[jamest0o0]

I read some people say they were difficult, not sure why though. Hopefully @JoeDigiorgio sees this.

 

[Matt Vanilla Gorilla]

I have in the past gone out and collected them in the wild. I got them to lay eggs and raised the hatchlings on sunflower seeds. The problem was that the sunflower seeds kept molding. Became very expensive to keep them! Sunflower seeds are not cheap!

 

[Andee]

I know they eat sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds, dunno what else

 

[Longhorn1234]

I have in the past gone out and collected them in the wild. I got them to lay eggs and raised the hatchlings on sunflower seeds. The problem was that the sunflower seeds kept molding. Became very expensive to keep them! Sunflower seeds are not cheap!

Did you feed them to your chameleons?

 

[JoeDigiorgio]

Hey guys. I never ended up pursuing it very far. I found them to be too much work and too low in fecundity for what would end up being a snack because of their size. My chameleons are too big for me to dedicate feeder space to such a thing.

On that thought, I’ll say I’m working on a clean culture of feeder anoles and grasshoppers at the moment. I’ll probably make a big post when I have something to show for the effort.

 

[jamest0o0]

@JoeDigiorgio I've been thinking about breeding anoles or day geckos for awhile now to feed my parson's when he's older. I'd imagine that'd be more natural than feeding fuzzies. I think insects should be the staple, but it would make a lot of sense that large chameleons benefit from whole vertebrate prey. My guy is only about the size of a panther atm and he is already eyeing up small hummingbirds that fly near him.... still too big though.

Definitely let me/us know how the anoles/grasshoppers go!

 

[Longhorn1234]

So what I'm getting from this thread is yes, they are safe to use as feeders if raised on seeds. But might not be worth the trouble of raising them, right? Haha

 

[Matt Vanilla Gorilla]

Did you feed them to your chameleons?

I only worked at starting the colony. Had about 8 eggs hatch and make it to half size. I had a busy work week and did not check on them for a few days. When I checked on them again the entire bottom of the container was covered with mold and all the bugs dead!

 

[JoeDigiorgio]

So what I'm getting from this thread is yes, they are safe to use as feeders if raised on seeds. But might not be worth the trouble of raising them, right? Haha

That’s my opinion, yes.

 

[JoeDigiorgio]

@JoeDigiorgio I've been thinking about breeding anoles or day geckos for awhile now to feed my parson's when he's older. I'd imagine that'd be more natural than feeding fuzzies. I think insects should be the staple, but it would make a lot of sense that large chameleons benefit from whole vertebrate prey. My guy is only about the size of a panther atm and he is already eyeing up small hummingbirds that fly near him.... still too big though.

Definitely let me/us know how the anoles/grasshoppers go!

Yea I’d much rather feed lizards monthly than use powdered vitamins on my melleri honestly. That’s for another thread though.

 

[chameleonneeds]

Yea I’d much rather feed lizards monthly than use powdered vitamins on my melleri honestly. That’s for another thread though.

Would you say feeding anoles could totally replace the need for supplements then? I'm interested in this, have you got some resources i can read about this?

 

[jamest0o0]

@chameleonneeds I talked to john courtney smith about it, and he talks about it in some of the CBP's. This is likely where they get it in the wild. Might be a little difficult to gauge how much they receive from the whole prey versus supplementing. It's a balancing act for sure. I'm sure adult melleri and parsonii eat a lot of small birds, lizards, and the occasional rodent.

 

[chameleonneeds]

@chameleonneeds I talked to john courtney smith about it, and he talks about it in some of the CBP's. This is likely where they get it in the wild. Might be a little difficult to gauge how much they receive from the whole prey versus supplementing. It's a balancing act for sure. I'm sure adult melleri and parsonii eat a lot of small birds, lizards, and the occasional rodent.

It only makes sense. I have noticed people are very sensitive about the topic of feeding vertebrates to chameleons. Maybe it isn't talked about and practiced for that reason. I had fed some local geckos to my veileds when I was less experienced and stopped when I perceived the risks of parasites. It could be a great idea to captive breed them as feeders.

I need to have a listen to the breeder podcasts, I've heard they're pretty good.

 

[jamest0o0]

@chameleonneeds yeah I think people are stuck on the concept of chameleons being purely insectivores. Honestly, I would have a hard time not feeling bad for the little lizards, mice, etc. But I also would like to keep as close to optimal natural nutrition as possible. Getting vitamins from vertebrates would be more beneficial than getting them from a supplement imo. At least for larger chameleons and montanes that tend to be sensitive to supplementation.