Red wigglers as a staple?

[Trixie]

I'm still researching these guys and figuring out if they are even right for me.

Anyways, my mom won't let me keep crickets in the house and I'll be completely honest here and say I don't want to cut up worms. I could easily get my hands on red wigglers (the ones you buy at petsmart) I was wondering how big red wigglers are and if they can be fed as a staple?

Thanks,
Trixie

 

[Slowbro]

I've never been successful at feeding my amphibians Red wigglers. They clearly hate the taste and smell of those specific worms.

They are very nutritious though and can be used as a staple food but my problem is that nothing wants to eat them.

my salamanders and newts love black worms, earthworms and nightcrawlers which are also packed with important vitamins and protein.

I would avoid red wigglers just because they must taste really bad

 

[JM29]

I agree with Slowbro : not all caudates will accept red wigglers.
In some cases, some individuals will eat them and others individuals from the same species will not.

I think the main reason they are proposed is that red wigglers are easy to rear on diverse organic matters.

 

[AdvythAF]

You could feed red-wigglers as a staple IF the animals will take them. I haven't tried feeding red-wigglers to Bombina but they might take them.

Nutritionally they are fine, but some animals hate their taste. I've had success feeding them to caudates, though.


If your animals refuse to take red-wigglers, and you don't want to use crickets, or chop-up worms....there are other feeder options.

You could try roaches (Dubia, Little Kenyan) and also feed the occassional waxworm/mealworm (not for staples though) or you could culture night crawlers and feed the smaller individuals (without cutting them).

 

[DocZelop]

Hi there,

my amphibians (bombinas and marbled newts) will eagerly accept red wigglers, but the worms are raised on semolina, so maybe they don't taste that bad...

Otherwise, houseflies are a good staple, and they keep the toads entertained. If you can find maggots at your local angler shop (very easy here in France), maggots will pupate and hatch in less than two weeks.

I also feed my FBT waxworms (not too much) to fatten them up after winter. They definitely love them.

Hope that helps, best !