Meal Worm Beetles
- Thread starter Phatturk
- Start date
lele
Avid Member
yes, but they art more difficult to digest (if you make a habit of feeding them) b/c they have more chitin (what exoskeleton primarily consists of). They, like the superworm beetles, have a defensive odor and your cham may not like them, but they will not harm him/her in anyway as an occasional feeder.
lele
lele
FaunaBgirl
New Member
I have a whole gang of super worm beetles as pets. They live in a shallow open container, but rarely leave it. I've got a two story egg carton home for them and feed them like kings. So they never go anywhere. They come up top and play. I enjoy watching them.
Chamgirl
Avid Member
You are kind to them
I must admit none of my lizards (other species too including Bearded Dragons) have ever attempted to eat these to my knowledge. Personally I cannot stand their vile smell...
FaunaBgirl
New Member
I usually have a really good sniffer. Why can't I smell the beetles? How would you describe the odor?
Eric Adrignola
Avid Member
It smells like the world trade center after september 11th. I went there a few months after, in December. It smells like burnt rock, plastic, paper and rubber - as acrid as you can concieve. I've accidentally tasted theri chemical defense - it got on my hand, I guess. Nasty.
My melleri loves beetles, mealworm beetles are one of his favorites. When he got bigger, I started taking superworm beetles, and washing their rear ends off. It works.
A bit of crucnhy chitin is good for them - too much soft food isn't good, they need a balance. They eat of lot of crunchy insects in the wild, so it cannot hurt in moderation.
My melleri loves beetles, mealworm beetles are one of his favorites. When he got bigger, I started taking superworm beetles, and washing their rear ends off. It works.
A bit of crucnhy chitin is good for them - too much soft food isn't good, they need a balance. They eat of lot of crunchy insects in the wild, so it cannot hurt in moderation.
FaunaBgirl
New Member
Washing beetle butts? <G>
Rather than sniffing one, I'll take your word for it. lol Thanks for the info. I was living in England during 9-11. US flags went up in all the store windows everywhere. Signs saying, we stand united with the United States went up. Everyone was so supportive of my concerns, being away from home in such a time. What were you doing there?
Rather than sniffing one, I'll take your word for it. lol Thanks for the info. I was living in England during 9-11. US flags went up in all the store windows everywhere. Signs saying, we stand united with the United States went up. Everyone was so supportive of my concerns, being away from home in such a time. What were you doing there?
Phatturk
New Member
I was living in Istanbul at the time and the same thing happened. Everyone was really supportive...until we went to Iraq. Then it became really hard to be an American over there even with a name like Erol Erturk.
Do Chams have a good sense of smell? does it matter to the Cham that the beetle stinks?
Do Chams have a good sense of smell? does it matter to the Cham that the beetle stinks?
Last edited:
FaunaBgirl
New Member
I was living in Istanbul at the time and the same thing happened. Everyone was really supportive...until we went to Iraq. Then it became really hard to be an American over there even with a name like Erol Erturk.
Do Chams have a good sense of smell? does it matter to the Cham that the beetle stinks?
It's a shame ... before I left, they were all hating Bush.... and then when we voted him in.... they hate us all... :{ Like usual though... it's not really the people... it's the politicians. Many regret their vote. :{ Can't we all just play chams and get along? <G>
Tygerr
Avid Member
No, chameleons have a very poor sense of smell.
In reptiles like lizards and snakes, smell is usually accomplised by 'tongue-flicking' to sample particles from the air. Those particles are then touched against an organ located in the nasal passages of the animal called the vomeronasal organ (or Jacobson's organ), which has sensory receptors that are used to interpret the 'smells' of the particles.
In chameleons, the vomeronasal organ is very underdeveloped and essentially doesn't function, so they don't rely on smell for hunting. Instead they use their highly developed eyes to hunt prey.
However, chameleons do have taste buds, and it is thought that they do rely quite a bit on their sense of taste (they are often seen licking branches when they explore new territories).
So whilst your cham may not smell the pungent defensive odour of the darkling beetles, it most probably can taste the acrid flavour of the substance the beetles secrete.
Last edited:
FaunaBgirl
New Member
Today I was rushed and for the first time, treated one of my beetles in haste, therefore provoking the psst, odor to come out. Not too bad from the zophoeba beetle. Did I spell that right?
Marc10edora
Avid Member
They look very cool when they hover in the air. I found one hovering in front of my face for one whole minute.
FaunaBgirl
New Member
Hovering? They hover?
RicoTheChem
Member
I have decided to keep the beetles but mot use then to feed him but to get meal worms from them. Basically a meal worm farm. Take a couple of large meal worms and put them in a container inside my chem tank. When they turn into pupa i move them from the tank into my beetle enclosure to hatch into beetles and te process starts again.
