Are grubs & phoenix worms the same??

I was just wondering if grubs & phoenix worms are the same thing. I saw a web site that sold Soldier grubs which are black soldier fly larve also under the name Calci worm & phoenix. Was thinking of adding to my chams diet for variety.

Yes, they are the same thing. Phoenix worms and Calci worms are trademarked names and soldier grubs is just the more general term.

Soldier fly maggots (or pheonix worms or whatever other pretty name they put on them to make them more appealing) are an okay prey choice. but they are quite small. I personally think they're not worth it.
Note - if your chameleon doest chew its prey, you might want to poke a pin hole into the maggots/grubs prior to feeding off. Otherwise they could pass right through undigested.

sandrachameleon said:

Note - if your chameleon doest chew its prey, you might want to poke a pin hole into the maggots/grubs prior to feeding off. Otherwise they could pass right through undigested.

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Hey Sandra, is this something that you have noticed or heard about? I have fed Phoenix worms to my chams for many years and still do, I clean their cages daily and have not seen any worms crawling out of their waste. My male pather usually grabs at least four of them at a time, with very little chewing before he aims for some more...

Eltortu said:

Hey Sandra, is this something that you have noticed or heard about? I have fed Phoenix worms to my chams for many years and still do, I clean their cages daily and have not seen any worms crawling out of their waste. My male pather usually grabs at least four of them at a time, with very little chewing before he aims for some more...

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This is entirely second hand information, about them going through undigested.
I dont use this particular feeder myself - too many better (IMO) choices to choose from But its been mentioned enough times on this forum by people who generally know what they're talking about, that it seemed worth repeating. Sounds like your cham chews some, and that's all it takes, just one small hole, for the digestive juices to do their work.

or maybe what I read was all just bullocks!

Edit: Woah that was weird.

Any who like I tried to say...

The digestibility of phoenix worms depends on the health of the chameleon as well as the heat source.

Reptiles' metabolism relies on a heat source.

IMO, phoenix worms/soldier grubs are a great feeder. Compared to any other, they're calcium ratio is remarkable. Only other feeder to compare in terms of calcium level would be butter worms which aren't exactly the cheapest.

Butterworms are less expensive than solider fly maggots, where I live.
Especially as it takes 5 Soldier Fly Maggots to equal a single butterworm in weight.

grubs is a generic term for the larvae of any insect that has a maggot like larval stage. this includes a lot of insects, most flies and a lot of non fly insects, house fly maggots are grubs , waxworms are the grubs (maggots)of waxmoths, even mealworms&superworms have a maggot stage. black soldier fly grubs are simply the maggot (larval stage) of black soldier flies, they are a great feeder in moderation and high in calcium( a better ca/p ratio than crickets or most common feeders), but have a tougher more leatherier exterior than say waxworms, or the maggot of something like a house fly, so they are not as easily digested by chams with compromised digestion, or chams that are dainty eaters, non chewers. alot of montanes have problems digesting bsfg because of their slower metabolism and the lower temps they are kept at. an undigested bsfg will look pretty much like it did when it was alive except that they come out dead (fairly common). nipping them in the side with a pair of nail clippers can help aid digestion. black soldier flies and their larvae are easy to grow (in huge quantities) in most areas that are above 60* they are commonly bred for feeders for tropical fish or other farmed freshwater fish and as a byproduct produce a compost that is highly prized by gardeners. they can be easily grown using a biopod or other homeade facsimile, with almost little or no effort. pheonix worms and calciworms are the same thing. calciworms is the registered trademark of timberline fisheries and only they can legally market them as calciworms.

Reptile Food
Serial Number: 78932655
Registration Number: 3321784
Filing Date: Jul 19, 2006
Last Applicant(s)/
Owner(s) of Record
Timberline Fisheries Corporation
201 East Timberline Drive
Marion, Il 62959 US /pheonix worms is a registered trademark of insect science resource llc. (dr. craig shepard a university of georgia entomologist) but they are all the same thing. the larval or grub(maggot)stage of the black soldier fly (hermetia illucens) according to dr shepards website bsfg produce lauric acid which(as claimed by dr shepard) to discourage coccidia (i personally have my doubts as to the practical application of this statement. jmo), details and nutritional analysis can be found at his website; http://store01.prostores.com/servlet/thephoenixwormstore/Page?template=comparison / edit ; as far as i'm concerned, they are a racket, why they are so expensive is beyond me, somebody with a biopod or similar can easily produce several to as much as 10 or more lbs a month. jmo