Dermestid Beetles as feeder?

[DakotaB]

Well I was just cleaning out the cricket bin getting ready for the new shipment. And I started thinking. What to do with all these Dermestids. Can these guys be used as feeders? Im more so interested in using the larvae than the actual ones in the beetle stage. They seem fairly soft.

Would there be any health concerns? Or even worry of them causing damage to the animal? Being these are the beetles that are used to clean bone in taxidermy.

It's just im not a wasteful person and i hate to just "trash" something that can basically sustain itself if there is a possible beneficial use for them.

 

[Orin]

I haven't tried them but they might chew on your animal (you should see them clean a dead chameleon) and the long hairs probably make the larvae upalatable.

 

[CarlC]

I've never used them and probably never would. Like Orin said they serve one purpose in nature and that is stripping off remains of dead things.

The hairs on the larva are pretty rough. If you get on carpet they can be a real pain to get out of the carpet. I think the ends of the hairs are curled over to help they stay put.

Carl