Is it ok to Veiled Cham adult Zophobas morio?

[mrbonzai211]

Is it ok to Feed My Veiled Cham adult Zophobas morio?

I'm starting a breeding program with Zophobas morio and I was wondering if I can feed my extra adult beetles to my cham?

 

[DrewNYC]

i would think it was ok in moderation like all things, i fed them to a jackson chameleon i had, he loved them yet hated the mealworm beetle.
drew

 

[mrbonzai211]

I've heard that they excrete a smelly substance when disturbed. Does this not bother chams because I've been told that my tarantulas might not like it.

 

[Will Hayward]

Zophoba Beetles smell like a new car. It's a bit odd, but not entirely unpleasant.

Both zophobas and beetles can be fed to chameleons. As Drew described, in moderation of course. The beetles seem to attract few chameleons that I have had, though those that have taken them, seem to have really been enthusiastic about having them. The beetles are extremely hard shelled and rarely come out digested as you would expect other feeders to be.

While I suspect that it isn't too much of an issue since few chameleons take them, but I would be cautious feeding them, and feed few and far between. I have no clue what the nutritional analysis would show, however there is something to be said for a varied diet.

 

[Dean Pulcini]

My WC Nosy Faly eats them but nobody else will. And yes they have an awful oder when handling and it doesn't wash off so easy.

 

[mrbonzai211]

Looks like I may feed one once and a while but I'm probably going to end up "putting down" the extra adults since they can't be sexed and females can lay 500 eggs in their lifetime. I just couldn't deal with those numbers. I went ahead and selected 7 to isolate so they'll become adults and we'll see how everything goes from there.

 

[Will Hayward]

Why would you want to eliminate them? Let them breed. If you have too many worms, pass them onto friends.

 

[mrbonzai211]

None of my friends keep reptiles or tarantulas so I don't exactly have an outlet for them. Plus, I have a colony of 125 superworms so it's the more the merrier with them, but the beetles coming out of that 125 will probably be too many. I can handle about 7 adults breeding right now, so the rest are gonna have to be humanely dealt with (i.e. the freezer). I wish I had more of a use for the beetles, but I've heard that chams don't usually like them and my tarantulas will probably reject them as well. I planned all of this thinking the beetles would be more valuable of a food source, but sadly they just aren't. But to be honest, the adult beetles only live about 30 days anyway while the larva lives around 8 months (more or less depending on temp) so it's not like I'm shortening their lives that much.

 

[Will Hayward]

I wonder how you are keeping them. It is extremely rare that the larvae will pupate without you manually separating them from the group. If there is stimulation from other beetles they wont rest long enough to initiate the metamorphosis. You are the one who generally controls how many beetles you get.

Should you deced that you are producing too many worms, then post them for free on this site available for pickup, or on your local craigslist., or charge small amounts that would cover the colonies costs for food and maitenance. While I'm not so heart bent of loosing an insect's life, but rather that that there is still likely potential for use.

Also there are several small mammals that do savor the taste and nutrition of the larvae.

 

[Eric Adrignola]

Actually, the lavae will pupate even if unseparated. The thing is, it takes time. Zoophobas are pretty long lived. I had a bunch of them in peat moss for a while. I ignored them for a good 6-9 months (aside from feeding them), as there were only a few dozen in there. When I was cleaning things out, I found some beetles, pupae and big worms. HUGE ones. Some were 3" long and very fat.

If separated when small, they just go ahead and pupate - this is what I always do when breeding them.

However, if just left to feed and go about their business, they'll eventually pupate.

Most chameleons spit the beetles out - they smell bad and taste far worse - (it was an accident, trust me). They can be washed. I wash their rear ends off, and the chameleons love them. Especially my melleri. They like mealworm beetles too.

A bit of chitin isn't bad for them. I imagine it's good for them in moderation. Like fiber. They have some limited ability to digest chitin, as the shells of these beetles are partially digested when passed. In the wild, much of their diet consists of very crunchy insects - they're not going to eat many soft-bodied ground dwellers and grubs in their native habitats.