What are good XL feeders to breed?

[Norcal55]

Hello All,
I am planning on expanding my group of chameleons to include larger specimens in the next year or so. With that being said I am wondering what keepers of larger Chameleons such as Parsons and Mellers feed to their Chams?

I have a large Dubia colony and and thinking about breeding Hissers as well. I raise silkworms off and on and can do Supers but find it easier to buy those when wanted.

I was thinking about grasshoppers as well but don't know where to start there. I believe another forum member was doing a blog or care sheet that I will have to search for.

Stick insects?

I just thought I would get a jump on the feeders before i take the plunge into other Chameleons
Thanks,
Jason

 

[CLP]

The roaches are a great choice, of course, they can still eat the smaller insects, just more of them I would also suggest hornworms.

 

[fluxlizard]

Mellers appetite isn't as large as you might guess from the size of the chameleon.

Dubia work great. This summer I got some blaberus hybrids to try and really digging those- they get much larger than dubia and grow very fast and are very productive, but the adult mortality rate is kind of high. Some say that the hybrids don't live as long, maybe that is why?

 

[Texas Ranger]

A few good big feeders to look at are discoids,Madagascar hissers,Halloween hissers,peppered roaches,giant cave roaches. As for grasshoppers I breed my own and they are kind of a pain there are seasonal species that breed and eggs hatch one time a year like greenbird grass hoppers then there are what I call plague species were lets say in the middle of winter you have a few warm days and out come some grasshoppers. Those are the species you want because they will breed and hatch all year long. One thing is the bigger the roach the more $$ it cost lol I was shocked when setting up my giant feeders. I payed $15 a roach on some giant species I have lol as babies and then had to grow them up to breed.

 

[Norcal55]

A few good big feeders to look at are discoids,Madagascar hissers,Halloween hissers,peppered roaches,giant cave roaches. As for grasshoppers I breed my own and they are kind of a pain there are seasonal species that breed and eggs hatch one time a year like greenbird grass hoppers then there are what I call plague species were lets say in the middle of winter you have a few warm days and out come some grasshoppers. Those are the species you want because they will breed and hatch all year long. One thing is the bigger the roach the more $$ it cost lol I was shocked when setting up my giant feeders. I payed $15 a roach on some giant species I have lol as babies and then had to grow them up to breed.

Great thats what I was thinking. Im cool with getting large roaches and paying more up front thats why i'm starting early. I actually like breeding my bugs as much as my Chams I was just concerned because only a few of my Panthers like my Dubia so I want a variety.
I saw that you were selling your Parsons, hope you found a great home for him or will find one.

We are in the process of looking for another house and if we were all moved and set up I would love to talk to you about him.

PM me if you still have some of your larger roaches and would not mind selling a few, I would love to get started

Thanks for the info!
Jason

 

[sandrachameleon]

hissers are easy, so I second or third that idea

I believe some people offer button quails, occasionally, to larger chameleons. shake and eat the eggs yourself when not wanting more baby birdies. This is not a recommendation, just something for you to look into

indian walking sticks would be good for panthers and your new bigger chams
mcclay specter sticks would be good for bigger chams (until /unless they get too prickly)
leaf insects might be good

Fruit Beetle larva / pachnoda are large (but perhaps fatty)

 

[Norcal55]

hissers are easy, so I second or third that idea

I believe some people offer button quails, occasionally, to larger chameleons. shake and eat the eggs yourself when not wanting more baby birdies. This is not a recommendation, just something for you to look into

indian walking sticks would be good for panthers and your new bigger chams
mcclay specter sticks would be good for bigger chams (until /unless they get too prickly)
leaf insects might be good

Fruit Beetle larva / pachnoda are large (but perhaps fatty)

Thanks so much. I will look for some Hissers and Indian walking ticks at a local show this weekend

 

[Texas Ranger]

Great thats what I was thinking. Im cool with getting large roaches and paying more up front thats why i'm starting early. I actually like breeding my bugs as much as my Chams I was just concerned because only a few of my Panthers like my Dubia so I want a variety.
I saw that you were selling your Parsons, hope you found a great home for him or will find one.

We are in the process of looking for another house and if we were all moved and set up I would love to talk to you about him.

PM me if you still have some of your larger roaches and would not mind selling a few, I would love to get started

Thanks for the info!
Jason

Yeah I was but changed my mind he is to awesome to sale lol I love just watching him move in his habitat. And I will send you a pm soon on what I have it's not much but it may be something you are interested in the one thing I Have noticed to is the bigger the roach the slower they breed but that's why you run a few different species.

 

[bigeaters101]

Mantids? Don't know much about bredding them personally but they get to a decent size. Just an idea

 

[ChamMan7]

B.giganteus is a massive species of roach (wingspan of 5 to 6 inches) with the longest wingspan in the hobby of Roaching/Bugging/Professional Chameleon feeding haha. These guys are going to run from 10 to 15 dollars a nymph though; however, there are some different species within the same genus (Blaberus) that are not much smaller and still get massive.. and are much cheaper!

One of the issues you are going to face with giganteus (if you decide to give them a try) is random and unforseeable die-offs. This seems to be true with a few members of the Blaberus genus; but with their size, and amount of nymphs they pump out, you shouldnt have a huge problem.

Madagascan Hissers are excellent large feeders; but keep in mind they are slow growing and slow breeding. An excellent alternative is halloween hissers, and one of my favorites, Wide-Horn hissers. Halloween and Wide-Horn hissers both grow very quickly compared to the standard Madagascan Hisser. (Halloweens stay a little smaller, and Wide-Horns are the largest of all the Madagascan Hissers!!!)

I keep my Melleri Group on the roaches above and have never had any issues; although, the one thing you will want to watch out for is and excess of protein. These guys are very meaty. I would definitely recommend that you supplement the big meals with a smaller, better balanced bug to meat ratio lol.

WOW that was long-winded...

 

[Norcal55]

B.giganteus is a massive species of roach (wingspan of 5 to 6 inches) with the longest wingspan in the hobby of Roaching/Bugging/Professional Chameleon feeding haha. These guys are going to run from 10 to 15 dollars a nymph though; however, there are some different species within the same genus (Blaberus) that are not much smaller and still get massive.. and are much cheaper!

One of the issues you are going to face with giganteus (if you decide to give them a try) is random and unforseeable die-offs. This seems to be true with a few members of the Blaberus genus; but with their size, and amount of nymphs they pump out, you shouldnt have a huge problem.

Madagascan Hissers are excellent large feeders; but keep in mind they are slow growing and slow breeding. An excellent alternative is halloween hissers, and one of my favorites, Wide-Horn hissers. Halloween and Wide-Horn hissers both grow very quickly compared to the standard Madagascan Hisser. (Halloweens stay a little smaller, and Wide-Horns are the largest of all the Madagascan Hissers!!!)

I keep my Melleri Group on the roaches above and have never had any issues; although, the one thing you will want to watch out for is and excess of protein. These guys are very meaty. I would definitely recommend that you supplement the big meals with a smaller, better balanced bug to meat ratio lol.

WOW that was long-winded...

Thanks everyone for all of the great information!

Now where in the world do I find all of these awesome giant roaches?
I see hissers a lot but now am learning that there are more than one type of Hisser lol
Thanks
Jason