Got superworms?

Professor T

Arachnodemon
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Apr 11, 2003
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I just fed my B. smithi adult and G. pulchra adult superworms. I was feeding my giant leaftailed geckos superworms, and thought I would give them a try with my Ts. Both grabbed and ate the superworm (giant mealworm looking thing) right away. It looked like they were smoking cigars.

My question is, have any of you fed superworms to your Ts? Are there any problems associated with this prey item. I was told for lizards superworms are much more nutritious than crickets. What about for Ts?
 

Kali

Arachnoknight
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Apr 23, 2003
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actually, while variation in diet benefits both animals, larval insects are higher in fatty materials than crickets, and should therefore be fed less frequently. i have had no problems with feeding t's superworms. mine love them (my lizards too).
 

ShaunHolder

Arachnoangel
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Jan 29, 2004
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Yep. My T's have meal worms and super worms every once in a while. I find burrowers annoying, but crushing thier heads works wonders. ;P
 

MyNameHere

Arachnobaron
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I haven't yet fed mealworms or superworms to any of my T's, but only cuz the T's are so small right now. I know of other T keepers who do, and I believe that it's recommended in Schultz's Tarantula Keeper's Guide.

I can't think of any reason why they wouldn't be an acceptable foodstuff.
 

Pheonixx

Arachnoprince
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What exactly is a Superworm? is it like a big waxworm or like a nightcrawler?
I have thought of using "waxworms" to feed but not sure if it would be healthy. BTW waxwoprms are those little white worms u can get at the bait store.
 

Professor T

Arachnodemon
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Thanks for the info. I too crushed their heads before feeding to prevent burrowing. The trick is not to crush them so much that they don't move. I will feed them superworms as an enrichment, but keep feeding crickets as the main diet.
 

Professor T

Arachnodemon
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Pheonixx said:
What exactly is a Superworm? is it like a big waxworm or like a nightcrawler?
I have thought of using "waxworms" to feed but not sure if it would be healthy. BTW waxwoprms are those little white worms u can get at the bait store.
Superworms look like mealworms only larger. You have to refrigerate mealworms to keep them from becoming pupa and adults. Superworms can be kept at room temperature without having them undergo metamorphosis.
 

CIRE

Arachnobaron
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Jun 19, 2004
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Silkworms are the way to go! (a little expensive though, and I've only tried them once since I only have 1 T that can take full grown silkies) My A. genic took one down that was almost as long as her...boy did she love it! (she didn't know if it was my finger or food at first, then she got the right idea! ;P )
 

eksong

Arachnoknight
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Mar 14, 2004
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I didn't know feeding larval insects was any problem... I've been feeding all my bugs only mealworms. Fatty or not, they seem to be doing alright.

Does anyone else use primarily mealworms?

Waxworms, on the other hand, are VERY fatty. Think of them as critter candy. I haven't tried with my bugs, but I do feed them to my geckos very infrequently. They are also notorious for short life spans outside the storefront.
 
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cricket54

Arachnoangel
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Dec 27, 2003
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All of my tarantulas enjoy superworms. I don't crush them just drop them in. The T. digs it up if it burrows. My Genic is crazy for these worms. A lot of my larger tarantulas aren't interested in mealworms. I've tried waxworms, but not all of them would eat them. I feed my tarantulas on crickets, but use these as well for variety.

Sharon
 

Walter

Arachnoknight
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Jul 14, 2003
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I feed the superworms to my N. carapoensis (other spiders seems to be not interested in this kind of food) and scorpions.
Not even necessary to crush superworm's head - no chance to escape!
 

luther

Arachnodemon
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Apr 8, 2003
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The only problem with feeding superworms is that if they survive and burrow they can seriously harm or even kill the tarantula during molting. Superworms have powerful jaws and it's hard to remove them once they burrow. I prefer to feed crickets, roaches and pinkies. Roaches are my favourite because all my terrestrials love them and they culture easily without the nasty smell of crickets.
 
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