Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Will Chams eat meal worms? I can breed these and don't really want to work with crickets. Can mealworms (dusted of course on good feed) be a staple for chams like they can be fore leopard geckos? Don't bite my head off if this is a big no-no.

Thanks,
Matt

Meal worms hold vitrually no nutritional value, they are all exoskeleton. Of couse you can gutload, but crickets are generally better, there is more to them. But I would not advise only feeding chams one food source. Personally, I feed ctrickets, super and meal worms, several types of roaches, sometimes silkworms, and on VERY rare ocasions a pinky to my larger chams. So could you keep a cham alive on mealworms, yes, but I would not advise it. I hope this helps. Good luck

Anthony

Exactly what I wanted to know. I appreciate the prompt response. I feed my leos exclusively mealworms, they get the protein/fat from them, the calcium and vitamins are from the supplements. The way i look at it the mealworms are just the messenger for what is needed. I am surprised they don't have a complete powder that you could sprinkle on anything that the animal would eat. Seems that is where human food is evolving to.

Matt

Hi Matt,

Good for you to check. A "complete" powder would be impossible as there is still some controversy over nutritional needs as it is. Mimicking nature the best we can is a healthier way to go - a variety of feeders which have dined on a variety of items.

Crickets really aren't that bad, but roaches (I would suggest non-climebrs) are a perfectly good staple (I am in the process of switching over), but, as Anthony pointed out a variety is key. Apparently your geckos don't tire of mealworms, but chams can get VERY picky.

There is a feeder nutritional chart in the Sept. 2002 issue of ChamNews at: http://www.chameleonnews.com/year2002/sept2002/nutrition/nutrition_sept_02.html

As for other research you can start at this KS article which will direct you to a lot of sites for info, vets, and questions to ask. Hopefully, all this will help you decide if a cham is right for you or not. That same site (ChamNews) also has an excellent article on the Costs of Keeping a Cham.

Here's a link to the resource article

lele

>>Exactly what I wanted to know. I appreciate the prompt response. I feed my leos exclusively mealworms, they get the protein/fat from them, the calcium and vitamins are from the supplements. The way i look at it the mealworms are just the messenger for what is needed. I am surprised they don't have a complete powder that you could sprinkle on anything that the animal would eat. Seems that is where human food is evolving to.
>>
>>Matt
Chameleon Help & Resource Info

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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula (no name yet)
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha

Very helpful, thank you. About 5 years ago I did major research on chams before I made a purchase. Had it all planned out to breed crickets. I still have not settled down to a permenent home, and would like to wait before I get a cham. Just snakes, leos, turtle and lots of fish now. After getting into leos I breed my own mealies, very low cost. I just wanted to check about possibly using them for chams. I will look into roaches, maybe that is something I can breed. I would like to be pretty self sufficient on food, maybe buying the occasional variety. Crickets are such nasty little things, smell, noise, etc.

Thanks for being so fast with a reply, and not being condescending.

Matt

But we will let you live.
Try silkworms, roaches (yuk), crickets (sorry), hornworms
sometimes superworms. Mealworms have very little nutrition to them. Vary the diet to reduce boredom.

Great pic Anson!
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Experience and appreciate nature's creation.

www.zenexotics.com

is that one of Sal's babies??? What a great photo!
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula (no name yet)
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha

I Tired of calling him carpet LOL

How about Shaggy?? Get it...Shaggy Carpet!! lol
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Feenie

1.1 vieled cham.- Stitch and Chloe
2.2 Canines Junior-pitbull chiuahuah mix, Jose- chiuahuah, Pearl- Staffie, and Daisy- Red nose Pit- foster child
1.0 boyfriend- Trent species unknown

I think you might be showing your age, there Jeffrey may not get it. LOL!!!
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula (no name yet)
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha

Ok, since you said Shaggy...it reminded me of the movie Austin Powers....so how about Powers?
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Experience and appreciate nature's creation.

www.zenexotics.com

Even though chameleons can eat mealworms, IMHO I don't think a
constant diet of any one insect is what is best for
a chameleon...even though it may make less work for us.

Mealworms not nutrtional?? In the following site they are
suggesting that they show potential as a protein source for
humans.
http://members.aol.com/yesclub2/blmealwo.html
http://www.foodnavigator.com/news/news-ng.asp?id=42592-insects-as-protein

There's more nutritional information in this site....
http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:FyAm66GfGmcJ:nagonline.net/Technical%20Papers/NAGFS00397Insects-JONIFEB24,2002MODIFIED.pdf "tenebrio molitor" AND nutrition&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

CA P MG NA K CU FE ZN MN SE
Mealworm 0.11 0.77 0.22 0.14 0.91 19 43 100 14 0.31
larva
Domestic 0.22 1.27 0.14 0.43 1.62 14 200 268 33 *
cricket

As you can see in the chart in the following site, mealworms
are more fatty, have much less calcium and vitamin C and lots
more calories than crickets.
http://www.angelfire.com/tx/facehugger/insect.html

Also...what you feed the mealworms will alter their value as
demonstrated in this study...
http://www.bioone.org/bioone/?request=get-abstract&issn=1042-7260&volume=031&issue=04&page=0512

Just my 2 cents worth.

Thank you all. I am really impressed with the Chameleon forum. I had my work done a few years prior to possibly making a jacksoni purchase, but I decided against it for the time being. I didn't know about meal worms until 2 years ago when I got a few leopard geckos. Made me think "would these work for chams?" and I couldn't remember reading about mealworms, but I might have and just didn't know what they were. You guys are great!!!

I am going to read up on some roaches and maybe some other critters. Maybe I can raise all my feeders other than crickets, and those would be the only ones I would need to buy. Depending on whre I move to, and my living situation maybe I can raise crickets, but they would have to be far, far away from the house.

Thanks all. Maybe you will see me aound in a few months to a year when I join the chameleon owner community. I do all my research well before getting into anything. Makes you anxious for the animal, but is the right thing to do. I have lots and lots of documents at home boxed away that I will drag out and reread once I move.

Matt

Matt - keep in mind that all the stuff you have from many years ago may have some incorrect information - especially on nutrition as well as UVB/Ca/D3. My suggestion would be to do most of your research from current websites and books. The Kammers have a good book list here www.calumma.com/Books-Art.htm and I know that CHAMELEONS: Nature's hidden jewels by Petr Necas is highly recommended.

Lurking and participating in this forum will be quite helpful, too - as you have already found out It seems clear that if you do decide to get one you will be a great, caring keeper!

Best of luck to you.

lele

I think I gave you this link before, but if not here you go...
Chameleon Help & Resource Info

-----
0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula (no name yet)
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha