I believe the species you are referring to is Gryllus assimilis. A few years back, you may or may not recall the cricket virus that was affecting many populations of breeder Acheta domesticus (domestic cricket). The boys at American Cricket Ranch picked up the new species of Gryllus and ran with it. I think that is still all they have. I was all about it at first, since these guys are a little more hardy than domesticus. Low and behold they bite. This species are much more likely to tear into any living thing you put them in with. I, nor any of the pet stores I work with, or other breeders I know of use them on any regular basis. I won't use them at all anymore, mostly because of their aggressive nature.
As far as nutritional value, I think their exoskeleton is thicker, thus having the same ratio just on a slightly higher scale. Besides, as far as crickets are concerned, feeding more smaller crickets (even to adult chams) yields higher nutrional transfer. I assume part of this is related to thinner exoskeleton in younger animals. This is all further supported by Ferguson et al. 2006.
I wouldn't waste the time unless you have a group of strong and hungry monitors that need some chase-able treats. But if you still do want to try them, check out American Cricket Ranch.
it's like the plague in Oklahoma right now man
