Feeder Insects
And remember, all feeder insects should be dusted with a high quality vitamin & mineral supplement to insure that your pet is provided with the maximum nutrition. Check out our selection of vitamin supplement powders.
Size: 32 oz container with 30-50 flies
Drosophila melanogaster is a species of fruit fly in the Drosophilidae family. The species is known generally as the common fruit fly or vinegar fly. They are only 1/16th of an inch long and are wingless, thus flightless, making them the preferred staple feeder insect for many dart frog species. They are easy to care for, breed quickly, and lay consistently with females laying around 400 eggs each. There will be an initial population boom at then a steady supply of flies for weeks following. Ideal temperatures are 75-80F with 60-80% humidity.
Directions: When starting new cultures use 30-50 young flies. Within 14 days new flies will have began to emerge. This is the initial boom and it is advised to wait a few days before feeding out the newly emerged flies. Melanogasters reach sexual maturity so quickly that they will start laying another generation of flies to hatch within the same culture. Feed out the flies at a good healthy pace and flies will continue to emerge for weeks to come, although it is wise to dispose of the culture by day 40.
Size: 32 oz container with 20-40 flies
Drosophila hydei is a species of fruit fly in the Drosophilidae family. They are 1/8th of an inch long making them great for larger dart frog species, tree frogs, lizards, praying mantids, and even fish. The flies offered are flightless and are fairly easy to maintain. When cultured consistently the amount of hydei flies produced is outstanding. Ideal temperatures are 75-78F with 60-80% humidity.
Directions: When starting new cultures use 20-40 young flies and older flies mixed (if possible) as males and females hatch and reach sexual maturity at different rates. They typically have one huge population boom around day 21 where the culture fills up with hundreds of flies overnight. When this happens it is wise to feed out the majority of the newly emerged flies as this boom may happen again 5-7 days later. Feed out any remaining flies and dispose of the culture by day 35.
Size: 32 oz container with 30 to 40 adults
Callosobruchus maculatus, or Bean Beetles are somewhat of a less common food item, but are very prolific, extremely easy to culture, and make a wonderful addition to the varied diets of larger dart frog species, tree frogs, geckos, chameleons and mantids. Bean beetles feed on black eyed peas (cowpeas) and offer 30% more protein than a cricket while only being slightly larger than hydei fruit flies. Adult Bean Beetles do not require any food or water. They live for 10-14 days mating and laying eggs. Females lay a single egg on each bean. The larva then burrows into the bean where it will feed, pupate, and then 30-45 days later will emerge as an adult beetle completing the cycle. There will be one huge population boom around day 30 and another smaller boom approximately 30 days after that.
Directions: To create a new culture from an existing one simply add a couple inches of new black eyed peas to the existing used ones. Make sure to leave a few adult beetles in the culture to keep it populated. To feed out adult beetles put coffee filters or cardboard toilet paper rolls in the container and simply shake the beetles off to be fed. Keep feeding out beetles at a steady pace so that they do not over populate the culture. Ideal temperatures are 75-79 with low humidity. No watering is necessary.
Size: 16 oz container with 20-30 adults
Confused Rice Flour Beetles, or Tribolium confusum are an easy to culture food source for poison dart frogs and other amphibians and reptiles that appreciate smaller food items. They are easy to maintain and can go months without any upkeep making them an ideal supplementary food source. They feed on and live in a media that consists mostly of flour. Being high in protein and fat, the rice flour beetles help contribute to a well rounded diet. Adult beetles live 5-12 months, and the females lay 100-500 eggs with the greatest production occurring within the first week of adulthood. The eggs hatch in a few days and the larva emerge which resemble meal worms, only much smaller. When threatened the adult rice flour beetles can emit an unpleasant tasting gas when threatened, making them unpalatable to some animals. so the larva are the preferred food item. It is important to leave as many adult beetles in the media as possible to ensure that your culture remains productive.
Directions: To feed out the larvae to your pets grab a sifter and sift through the media. Once all the media has evacuated the sifter you will be left with adult beetles and larvae. Set the sifter back into the media and allow the adults to crawl back into it from which they came. Now empty the remaining larvae into petri dishes and place into enclosures for feeding. Ideal temperatures are 73-82 with low humidity.
