Superworms ??
- Thread starter Tarzansma
- Start date
lele
Avid Member
Hi - Most places offer only the large larave, but a few offer them at smaller sizes. The rule of thumb is no longer than the cham's head is wide (b/t eyes). Luna was a year before I began to give them to her. If you get a large quantity there are always some in stage of molting so you can dig thru the substrate and pick out the freshly molted. They will be very light in color as their exoskeleton (skin) has not yet hardened. these are easier for your cham to digest and their mandibles (mouth parts) are not as developed either so less chance of nipping your cham (don't worry, if your cham gets nipped it is rarely a problem. they usually "know" to take the head first)
did this help?
did this help?
jvillereptile
New Member
you don't have to get superworm. mealworm come in all size the place i order my bug from has 3different sizes superworms 2", gaint mealworm 1-1/2", medium mealworms 1", my veiled love to eat the white superworms . the only problem with the place i order from is they won't ship out of florida sorry
lele
Avid Member
Tarzansma said:
They just seem to know which end to take first. They don't bite the head off, but if it is their first chomp it will disable the super right away. If they take it foro the back end first the super might grasp on to the cham but frankly, there is not much of a fight with the cham's tongue and strong jaw.
Yes, the large ones would likely be too much. I have never ordered form this particular company, but they offer them in 4 sizes Superworm Farm
lele
Avid Member
mealies, giant and supers are different
mealworms, Tenebrio molitor, have higher amount of chitin (hard outer "skin") than supers. Supers, Zophobas morio, have more moisture and fat. Becuase they are fatty they should not be a staple food. But as we know the more diverse the diet, the better.
giant mealworms are mealworms, but they are "giant" because growth hormones are used to make them grow to an unaturally large size before morphing into beetles. The jury is still out on the effect of GH on our herps. Personally not worth the risk since there are so many feeders available.
jvillereptile said:
mealworms, Tenebrio molitor, have higher amount of chitin (hard outer "skin") than supers. Supers, Zophobas morio, have more moisture and fat. Becuase they are fatty they should not be a staple food. But as we know the more diverse the diet, the better.
giant mealworms are mealworms, but they are "giant" because growth hormones are used to make them grow to an unaturally large size before morphing into beetles. The jury is still out on the effect of GH on our herps. Personally not worth the risk since there are so many feeders available.
Tarzansma,
Hi...I do not wish to contradict anything Lele said (I respect everything she says)...but your 8.5 month old veiled should be nearing full adult size...and should be able to take down a full-sized superworm with no problems. Although the length of the worm of the worm may be a lot longer than the width between the chameleons eyes...its diameter is much smaller...and so should not pose any health risk to your cham. I think mealworms would actually be too "small" for your cham (too "small" in the sense that they would need to eat a lot to be "satiated." Anyway, a full-sized cricket might actually be larger than the width between your chams eyes. I cannot tell you at what age this "rule" no longer applies (a full-sized superworm is indeed probably too large for most juvenile veileds although the diameter may still be smaller than the width between the eyes)...but you might want to try test-feeding your cham a superworm...and observe how he eats it (does he appear to struggle getting it down). I believe I introduced superworms to my male veiled around 5-6 months of age.
Well...I don't want to recommend anything that could be dangerous to your cham...so you may wish to wait and hear what others have to say also...
Hi...I do not wish to contradict anything Lele said (I respect everything she says)...but your 8.5 month old veiled should be nearing full adult size...and should be able to take down a full-sized superworm with no problems. Although the length of the worm of the worm may be a lot longer than the width between the chameleons eyes...its diameter is much smaller...and so should not pose any health risk to your cham. I think mealworms would actually be too "small" for your cham (too "small" in the sense that they would need to eat a lot to be "satiated." Anyway, a full-sized cricket might actually be larger than the width between your chams eyes. I cannot tell you at what age this "rule" no longer applies (a full-sized superworm is indeed probably too large for most juvenile veileds although the diameter may still be smaller than the width between the eyes)...but you might want to try test-feeding your cham a superworm...and observe how he eats it (does he appear to struggle getting it down). I believe I introduced superworms to my male veiled around 5-6 months of age.
Well...I don't want to recommend anything that could be dangerous to your cham...so you may wish to wait and hear what others have to say also...
lele
Avid Member
nosferatu,
I think I was just playing it safe. New to this forum and don't know everyone and/or experience yet Just as the issue about them nipping is not really that big a deal, but I have found from a lot of time on other forums that unless you are quite specific with a new keeper they just do whatever they want to anyway! lol! Tarzansma - last comment not directed to you!
Supers have a high ratio of moisture and fat so, as you pointed out, they follow the rule closer to that of silkies and other soft bodied feeders. So I didn't mean to sound any alarms.
The nice thing about supers is that they "keep" forever. Other than potential mite problems in hot humid containers with meal substrate (ugh! learned THAT the hard way!) they are even easier to keep than roaches...ah, roaches, now that always makes for an interesting thread!
I think I was just playing it safe. New to this forum and don't know everyone and/or experience yet
Just as the issue about them nipping is not really that big a deal, but I have found from a lot of time on other forums that unless you are quite specific with a new keeper they just do whatever they want to anyway! lol! Tarzansma - last comment not directed to you! Supers have a high ratio of moisture and fat so, as you pointed out, they follow the rule closer to that of silkies and other soft bodied feeders. So I didn't mean to sound any alarms.
The nice thing about supers is that they "keep" forever. Other than potential mite problems in hot humid containers with meal substrate (ugh! learned THAT the hard way!) they are even easier to keep than roaches...ah, roaches, now that always makes for an interesting thread!
Prism Chameleons
Established Member
Rule of thumb is usually no bigger than their head with crickets when they are babies up to 6-8 months old or so. Your 8 1/2 month old should be able to handle super worms no problem. My 6 month old "Echo" on my website, Picasso/Ambilobe nearly grabs those things before they even hit the vine I place them on for him lol. And the others are right... they come in different sizes. I usually order from www.wormman.com or www.reptilefood.com and every time I have received a variety of sizes in each shipment.
The plus about Worm Man is that you don't have to order 1000... they have smaller amounts you are able to order.... I believe reptile.com comes in 1000 boxes only.
Try one and see... if he can't handle it, he'll spit it out.
The plus about Worm Man is that you don't have to order 1000... they have smaller amounts you are able to order.... I believe reptile.com comes in 1000 boxes only.
Try one and see... if he can't handle it, he'll spit it out.
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