Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So...I've been hearing all sorts of different things lately as of the worm issue. I have two leos that used to eat crickets like there was no tomorrow. They are each about 7-8 months old. As of the last month or so both of them have gotten much pickier about their feeding habits. They no longer eat in front of me. It is only when crickets enter their hides that they eat any, and they are eating less. My geckos are by no means thin, but they do not look as bulky as I'd like them to. They've been on a staple of crickets only, and I've tried to introduce meal worms but I have been unsucessful. I have heard superworms are a good medium to use as a staple substituted by crickets. Thoughts? I just dropped a few waxworms in and in no time both of the geckos caught on and nailed em. Waxworms look similar to mealies and move the same way. What is it that discourages them from mealies but encourages them to waxworms. Do supers have the same appeal that waxworms have? What is the difference between supers and mealies? what do you think is the best worms option for me being that I want to fatten my leos up but want to have a constant worm staple in their diet. Could someone post a picture of supers? and advice? thanks.

As Lepord geckso get older they do tend to slow down on eatting and seem to get pickier. Wax wroms tend to move differently then mealies and also are softer bodied so repitles love them. My five girls won't eat mealies if they are scattered over the cage so i put alot into a dish making them all move around, this tends to make them eat even if they are not hungery. I dont use supers only because they are huge and my leos have a hard time eatting them. sorry i dont have a camera so i can't post any hope this helps.

Supers and mealworms are the larvae of different beetle species. Superworms can get pretty large (over 2" long), so your leos would have to be big (at least 35 grams) to take them. If you're interested though, small superworms are available at superwormfarm.com. The good thing about supers is that they can last over 6 months without pupating, so it makes good sense to buy them in bulk. No need to refrigerate them. They do require more moisture than mealworms though, and they turn cannibalistic if overcrowded.

What make superworms appealing is that they're VERY active. On the flip side, I've tried using supers as a staple, and it only lasted about 4-5 months before my leos got sick of the taste. Seems like the mealworms taste better.

As for waxworms, the appeal is completely in the taste. Only offer those as the occasional treat.

There are pics with more info on various sites: grubco.com, wormman.com, reptilefood.com to name a few.
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5.8 leopard geckos

chickabowwow