Black Soldier Fly Larvae

[jajeanpierre]

Actually my BSFL are gut loaded very well
The majority of their diet consists of a healthy nutrition packed food similar to cricket crack. The adult BSFL are large plump and juicy and the flies are huge as far as black soldier flies go. They honestly eat better then I do..Lol!

The runty starving "phoenix worms" I was talking about turning into tiny, scrawny flies were obviously not yours but a commercial farm's.

I don't worry about bacteria or mold since they are decomposter bugs which means bacteria and mold are part of their world. I get my bsf larvae out of my compost. I wash them off and then put them in a clean container with moist coco fiber and then feed them for a day or two if I feed them as worms. Normally I just want the flies.

 

[MeruJack]

BSFL can pretty much eat anything but depending on what you feed them they can't digest it very quickly. So anything squishy and soft like cooked vegies, ripe bananas, ripe apples, etc will be eaten quickly. Fresh fruit and vegies, greens, peals and rinds take a while for them to eat and chances are the food is going to mold and spoil by the time it is eaten. This can cause a lot of smell, pathogens and bacteria which ends up on the Lavae. My BSFL are raised indoors and are super clean because of the nutritious diet I feed them and my chams love them and the flies

Thank you kindly for the info. I have two squishy bananas sitting on the kitchen counter as we speak. I will offer them as their first meal with me. Again, thanks!

 

[JaxyGirl]

Thank you kindly for the info. I have two squishy bananas sitting on the kitchen counter as we speak. I will offer them as their first meal with me. Again, thanks!

They're going to love that!!!

 

[JaxyGirl]

The runty starving "phoenix worms" I was talking about turning into tiny, scrawny flies were obviously not yours but a commercial farm's.

I don't worry about bacteria or mold since they are decomposter bugs which means bacteria and mold are part of their world. I get my bsf larvae out of my compost. I wash them off and then put them in a clean container with moist coco fiber and then feed them for a day or two if I feed them as worms. Normally I just want the flies.

My chams love the flies too
I found that if the worms are small because they don't eat enough they will pupate early and then the flies will be small too.

 

[Davecameos]

Have to agree. My guy goes crazy over the flies. And I noticed he doesn't always digest the larvae. No issues with the flies, other than getting them out of the container and into the cage without flying off.

If he does not digest them the best option is to prick them before feeding them to him. That will facilitate digestion

 

[Davecameos]

IMO they are the best flies due to their high calcium content.

 

[trickedoutbiker]

By gut load, I mean feed. If you don't feed your feeder bugs they have no choice but to cannibalize themselves to survive and your feeder becomes less and less nutritious. That applies to all feeder insects from Black Soldier Fly larvae to crickets.

I feed all of my bugs that CAN be gutloaded. Always. My BSFL were always eating soft foods such as steamed carrots, soft apples, soft bananas, and I gave them half a strawberry once and they devoured that too. They eat pretty much anything but softer foods are best yes. As for the ones I put into a different container to turn into flies, I did add a small pinch of Cricket Crack to the top the coffee grounds material (as recommended by JaxyGirl) so that way they COULD eat it if they were not ready to pupate, but they hardly touched it so I didn't feel it necessary to mention it. I think they ignored it mostly because, when separating my grubs from my going-to-be-flies, I chose all the darker black ones to go into the fly container because they were already ready to morph anyways. Most of them began to burrow within minutes.

Actually my BSFL are gut loaded very well
The majority of their diet consists of a healthy nutrition packed food similar to cricket crack. The adult BSFL are large plump and juicy and the flies are huge as far as black soldier flies go.

I can attest to this. The larvae were deff healthy and nice. And the flies were all nice and big. My gf thought they were huge wasps when I accidentally let a few escape in the house. Very easy to catch though because they fly pretty slow and 99.9% always head for a light source.

@JaxyGirl No problem for the shout out. Figured I'd give my opinion since the topic was up for discussion. I will be ordering more in the future if you are going to be selling them. I know you said you always have a lot. I have so many insects right now that I need to dwindle down the crop first so to speak. Crickets, Dubia, Superworms, Superworm (Darkling) Beetles, Hornworms, 1 Hornworm (Hawk Moth) pupae, Butterworms, Wax worms, Wax worm moths and some pupae, seven 2-3" long mantids (and still growing)..... I'm also visiting my mother in about a week, and because I live in a big city and she lives 5 miles out in a countryside with 4 acres that include a huge field and a pond, I'm bringing jars and containers with me. There's a good chance I will be coming home with some grasshoppers, butterflies, dragonflies, and maybe some Cicadas if I can find any. Have those emerged from the grounds already this year, anybody know? It's the 17-year Cicadas this year I do believe. Would be neat to find some. Never know what I might come across in the field.... if I get REALLY lucky, I might come home with MORE mantids or a walking stick or something. And if there are bumblebee nests or hornet nests I might capture a few of those as well and chop their stingers off before using them as feeders. They gotta be full of nectar and honey and I've heard good things about people using them as feeders. So many options... I almost feel like a bug keeper and not a chameleon keeper sometimes.