Do dried insects work?

mike · Post by **mike** » Sun Apr 19, 2009 11:43 am

I don't mind the birds eating just the mealworm heads but that is a lot of waste. Do the dried insects work well enough for breeding finches? It seems like a lot less waste. Can anyone give me their experiences with this?
Thanks

L in Ontario · Post by **L in Ontario** » Sun Apr 19, 2009 11:53 am

I'ved mixed dried insects (from a can) in to my fresh eggfood / soak seed mix - they eat it all; but whether it's enough protein with the dried insects compared to the fresh... I'm not sure. I also offer live mealies to breeding waxbills.

mike · Post by **mike** » Sun Apr 19, 2009 2:36 pm

L in Ontario wrote:I'ved mixed dried insects (from a can) in to my fresh eggfood / soak seed mix - they eat it all; but whether it's enough protein with the dried insects compared to the fresh... I'm not sure. I also offer live mealies to breeding waxbills.

I'd like to find mini-mealworms but I can't. I think they are eating the heads because the worms are too big. They are more inclined to eat the whole mealworm when it's a little smaller. They eat crickets but they are too jumpy and I can't crush the rear legs of 1000 crickets a day.

There has to be something else out there. It's impossible to find maggots in the city and since Toronto seems to be swallowing up everything around it, I'd have to drive an hour north to find a bait shop. Once, a friend and I saw a bait vending machine near Elora. We thought that was hilarious so we took a picture. Typical ignorant Torontonians, eh? I still think it's funny though, lol.

Post by **Sally** » Sun Apr 19, 2009 6:30 pm

Mike, I am buying mini mealworms, and the CBs still bite the heads and toss the rest.

I think they just like to drive me crazy! None of my species are as wasteful as the CBs.

Pukasand · Post by **Pukasand** » Sun Apr 19, 2009 7:07 pm

Have you tried Phoenix worms? You can buy them at your pet store or online. They are much smaller than the mealworms, more nutritious and about the same price. I use those for my birds, along with canned mini mealies and Insect Treat from ladygouldianfinch.com. They gobble them all up. Good luck

mike · Post by **mike** » Sun Apr 19, 2009 8:53 pm

The problem with soldier flies is that they are expensive. If a pair of CBs goes through 100 mealworms a day, and phoenix worms are $8-9 per hundred, that's going to be very pricey after it's all done! Mealworms are only $8-9 per 1000.

I'd like to get my hands on bottle fly maggots. Those are much cheaper (after they are "cleaned").

nixity · Post by **nixity** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 1:12 pm

Have you tried GrubCo.com?

I don't really know what the protocol or rules are against shipping these to CA but I think they sell both maggots and wingless fruit flies (which I hear are insanely popular with the insect eating waxbills).

DVBourassa · Post by **DVBourassa** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 1:56 pm

Wingless fruit flies sound like a great idea for outdoor aviaries.

I'm currently looking into what live food to buy and where but I don't like the idea of escapees crawling around my house. Ewww. Inability to get out of a dish is an important criteria.

nixity · Post by **nixity** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 1:58 pm

I think they also have ant larvae/pupae, which can't crawl - but I think have to be kept refrigerated :)

nixity · Post by **nixity** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 2:03 pm

I just checked.. they have fly larvae, but they apparently don't have the wingless fruit flies or the ants. I'll have to find out where I saw those before..

mike · Post by **mike** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 7:46 pm

I think mealworms and crickets can be imported into Canada without paperwork but I'm not sure about maggots. Grubco would be perfect and I know they are popular in the US but I don't think it's possible to use them here in Canada unless I'm a reseller. Everything is available in Canada but it's just a matter of finding out where.
Mini mealworms have limited value (too much chitin) in the reptile hobby which is basically all I know, so I don't know where to find them here.
I know maggots are available outside the greater city area but that area is very massive and an hour drive for maggots seems like a lot of effort, especially since if they work, I'd need to buy them regularly.
Flightless fruit flies are simple enough to find at the local reptile expo, or I can order them from the pet shop. I might try those.
I'll take a kick at some phoenix worms while I'm at it, for something different, but I can't imagine buying them to often.

Loose bugs in the house don't bug me (;)) too much but I'd like them to stay in the cage. Fruit flies can climb anything.

Thanks for all the help!

Pukasand · Post by **Pukasand** » Wed Apr 22, 2009 7:45 pm

RE: Phoenix worms. I paid $28. for 600 small worms direct from the company.. that's $4.66 per 100 and that incl. S&H. They are about 1/4-1/2 inch and can't crawl out of a shallow dish. It took 2 days to receive from the day I ordered.

nixity · Post by **nixity** » Wed Apr 22, 2009 8:43 pm

Pukasand - which company?

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Wed Apr 22, 2009 9:48 pm

nixity
Not sure where Pukasand got theres but here is a link you can order from
http://store01.prostores.com/servlet/th ... StoreFront

mike · Post by **mike** » Thu Apr 23, 2009 7:08 am

Pukasand wrote:RE: Phoenix worms. I paid $28. for 600 small worms direct from the company.. that's $4.66 per 100 and that incl. S&H. They are about 1/4-1/2 inch and can't crawl out of a shallow dish. It took 2 days to receive from the day I ordered.

Through our Canadian distributor the cost is $34 which translates to about $27 CAD (before shipping). Representatives also come to the Toronto Reptile Expo and I think the worms are even cheaper there. But with mealworms costing 1/10th that price, it's hard to convince myself to buy the Phoenix worms; maybe as a supplement.