Nutritional Value of Insects

[xephyr17]

Hey, just in case anybody needs this, these are the nutritional values of some insects that people feed their Chameleons. I figure it'd be nice to have because you want to keep a balanced diet...

Butterworm:
Moisture - 58.54%
Protein - 16.20%
Calcium - 42.90mg/100g
Fat - 5.21%


Hornworm (yellow food):
Moisture - 85%
Protein - 9%
Calcium - 46.40mg/100g
Fat - 3.07%


Superworm:
Moisture - 59%
Protein - 20%
Calcium - 10.60mg/100g
Fat - 16%


Mealworm:
Moisture - 59%
Protein - 10%
Calcium - 3.28mg/100g
Fat - 13%


Silkworm:
Moisture - 76%
Protein - 64%
Calcium - 34mg/100g
Fat - 10%


Waxworm:
Moisture - 61%
Protein - 16%
Calcium - 13.14mg/100g
Fat - 20%


Phoenixworm:
Moisture - N/A
Protein - 17%
Calcium - 34mg/100g
Fat - 9.5%


Crickets:
Moisture - 74%
Protein - 18%
Calcium - 14mg/100g
Fat - 6%


Dubia Roach:
Moisture - 61%
Protein - 36%
Calcium - 20mg/100g
Fat - 7%


If you have any questions, let me know!!

Thanks,
Dillon

 

[LookinRound]

I'm curious if you have papers these values come from? Are their any sources, or is this just compiled from what others have stated that you've seen?

 

[xephyr17]

I'm curious if you have papers these values come from? Are their any sources, or is this just compiled from what others have stated that you've seen?

I've done tons of hours of research and although I haven't gotten any tests done in local labs, these values are from reliable sites on insects that I've compiled myself.

 

[xephyr17]

Hey, just in case anybody needs this, these are the nutritional values of some insects that people feed their Chameleons. I figure it'd be nice to have because you want to keep a balanced diet...

...

Thanks,
Dillon

Adding in some:

Grasshoppers:
Moisture - 62.30%
Protein - 20.60%
Calcium - 35.20mg/100g
Fat - 6.10%

Red Runners (B. Lateralis):
Moisture - 63.63%
Protein - 36.50%
Calcium - ?
Fat - 5.31%

Earthworms:
Moisture - ?
Protein - 62.20%
Calcium - 1.72 (% Dry Wt)
Phosphorous - 0.90 (% Dry Wt)
Cahos Ratio - 1.91
(The availability of calcium is affected by phosphorous. Ideally, the Cahos ratio should be >1. Foods that have a lower ratio should be gutloaded, supplemented, or balanced with other foods.)
Fat - 17.70%

Nightcrawlers:
Moisture - ?
Protein - 60.70%
Calcium - 1.52 (% Dry Wt)
Phosphorous - 0.96 (% Dry Wt)
Cahos Ratio - 1.58
Fat - 4.40%

 

[kinyonga]

IMHO if you are getting this information from sites you should post the links to the sites.

 

[adrouin]

Also what are these percents based on? If you add up the % a lot of them are over 100 which is impossible
You can't be 50% water and 70% protein that's 120%
I don't know maybe I'm reading into this to much.

 

[xephyr17]

IMHO if you are getting this information from sites you should post the links to the sites.

Sorry about that one, here are the links to the sites that I visited to gather this information to the best of my ability.

http://www.theroachguy.com/new_page_1.htm
http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html
http://www.bugsgalore.ca/horn-worms
http://www.rainbowmealworms.net/hornworms
http://chamownersweb.net/insects/nutritional_values.htm
http://www.grubco.com/nutritional_information.cfm
http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/foods2.shtml
http://www.moonvalleyreptiles.com/nutrition/common-feeder-insects
http://www.phoenixworm.com/servlet/the-template/comparison/Page
http://www.elliotsbutterworms.com/nutrition.htm

Please note that some of these values are contradictary in fact, and I apologize for any misconceptions or confusions on the matter. Based on my research, these values are relatively accurate. And obviously there is the possibility of these being slightly different from insect to insect of the same species, but they are still very close.

Happy reading

 

[pigglett79]

It would also be helpful to add the calcium to phosphorus ratios like this website does.

http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html

It is an important piece if information when deciding which feeders need calcium dusting.