Mealworms are an extremely common feeder insect for a lot of pets, so understandably many individuals surprise if tarantulas can eat mealworms.
Tarantulas can eat mealworms with out downside.
Mealworms are additionally simple to work with for many tarantula fans; for instance they don’t soar about like crickets or attempt to fly away like fruit flies.
Nonetheless earlier than we give mealworms a “seal of approval” for tarantulas there are a couple of parts we have to take into account in additional depth…
Can Mealworms Damage Tarantulas?
Most uneaten feeder bugs may cause misery to your tarantula if left of their cage too lengthy.
This is applicable to mealworms simply because it does different livefood.
The fact is that whereas mealworms are herbivores, they nonetheless have robust mandibles (mouthparts) and are able to giving your tarantula a nasty nip.
A mealworm that’s immediately grabbed and eaten by your tarantula may be very unlikely to do any hurt. Nonetheless a mealworm left to roam your tarantula cage could trigger annoyance at worst, or severe injury if it nips your tarantula whereas it’s trying to molt.
Because of this, whereas mealworms can actually be fed to tarantulas, any uneaten mealworms must be swiftly faraway from the cage.
Will Tarantulas Eat Lifeless Mealworms?
Some tarantulas have been reported to eat lifeless mealworms, particularly if they’re not too long ago killed.
Certainly, some tarantula keepers rearing smaller tarantulas (slings and juveniles) chop up mealworms into smaller items, giving the smaller chunks to their tinier tarantulas.
Not all tarantulas will settle for a lifeless mealworm, however some will. Subsequently it’s all the time price attempting if that is one thing of curiosity to you. Simply don’t be too upset in case your tarantula seems to be one of many specimens that turns its nostril up at something aside from dwell prey.
Do Spiders Eat Dried Mealworms?
Tarantulas typically gained’t eat dried mealworms.
Whereas dried mealworms are clearly helpful from the angle of the tarantula keeper – because of their lengthy “shelf life” – it appears that evidently most tarantulas gained’t attempt consuming them.
Happily there are alternate options, like shopping for dwell mealworms and both slowing down their development charges by maintaining them in a fridge or freezing among the mealworms for later use.
Can Tarantulas Eat Darkling Beetles?
Mealworms aren’t “worms” in any respect. They’re the larvae of small black beetles, generally identified both as flour beetles or darkling beetles.
When you’ve purchased a bathtub of mealworms however are discovering that the worms are metamorphosing into grownup beetles it’s an apparent query as as to whether they are often fed to tarantulas.
Usually talking tarantulas don’t eat darkling beetles. The robust exoskeleton and ugly style renders them unappealing to tarantulas as meals.
Most likely a greater choice than attempting to feed darkling beetles to your tarantula is utilizing these grownup beetles to begin your personal mealworm colony. Mealworms are extremely simple to breed within the dwelling, and also you’ll shortly be producing a endless provide of the worms to feed to your tarantula assortment.
The way to Prolong the Lifetime of Mealworms
The one irritating factor about mealworms as a feeder insect is how shortly they pupate. When you solely have a handful of tarantulas then you could effectively discover that a lot of the mealworms flip into grownup beetles lengthy earlier than they’re launched to your spiders.
Nonetheless there are a couple of choices obtainable to you.
First, and presumably best, is to place the mealworms someplace cool. This slows down their development charge, extending the time it takes for them to show into grownup beetles. A family fridge tends to work effectively.
With regards to feeding time to your tarantula merely take away a couple of of the mealworms, enable them time to heat up (and so turn into extra energetic) after which provide them to your arachnids.
A second choice utilized by some keepers is definitely to freeze uneaten mealworms. These are then thawed out and fed to their spiders lifeless. Whereas I’ve not personally tried this I do know some keepers swear by this easy technique to make a single tub of mealworms final for months.
Causes To not Feed Mealworms to a Tarantula
So although we’ve found that tarantulas can eat mealworms, it’s a reasonably completely different query as as to whether you ought to feed them. Within the curiosity of stability, subsequently, let’s talk about among the downsides of feeding mealworms to tarantulas…
Mealworms Burrow Shortly
Probably probably the most annoying factor about feeding mealworms to tarantulas is simply how shortly mealworms will burrow down into the substrate of your tarantula cage. As soon as they’re buried they’re extremely tough to seek out once more.
This has two knock-on results in fact. Firstly, in case your tarantula doesn’t seize the mealworm in a short time then it could by no means even discover the meal you’ve supplied.
That is notably problematic for shyer tarantulas which can not come tearing out to catch their dinner each time you toss a feeder insect in.
Secondly, in fact, a hidden mealworm can doubtlessly symbolize hazard the subsequent time your tarantula molts. If the mealworm involves the floor when your tarantula is molting and provides it a nasty nip then this will create a severe scenario.
Which means that mealworms are actually solely an acceptable meals for tarantulas with a really sturdy feeding response, and any mealworms that aren’t immediately snapped up must be eliminated earlier than they’ve an opportunity to burrow out of view.
Mealworms Don’t Climb
Simply as mealworms are likely to burrow into the substrate, so additionally they don’t climb. Which may not sound like a lot a difficulty, however it might probably make them unsuitable for arboreal tarantulas.
Most arboreal tarantulas conceal away in burrows through the day; most sometimes a vertical piece of cork bark in captivity. Different bugs that climb – reminiscent of locusts or cockroaches – will typically climb up the bark, the place the tarantula inside can sense them. They’re typically picked off shortly.
Nonetheless as mealworms don’t climb – and certainly will bury themselves inside minutes of being put into your tarantula cage – your arboreal tarantula could not even concentrate on their existence. On this approach your tarantula could go hungry even when meals has been supplied.
Mealworms Have Excessive Chitin Ranges
Mealworms aren’t thought-about to be the best high quality feeder insect round. They’ve thick shells and lack most of the vitamins seen in cockroaches or crickets.
Consequently, whereas tarantulas will certainly eat mealworms, and so they could be a common a part of the eating regimen, they shouldn’t be the solely insect you feed. Selection is essential. By all means give your spider a couple of mealworms one week, however the subsequent week attempt to provide cockroaches, crickets or locusts to make sure a variety of vitamins are being consumed.
The way to Feed Your Tarantula Mealworms
When you’ve determined to attempt feeding mealworms to your tarantula then there are a couple of sensible ideas price mentioning earlier than we spherical off this text.
Intestine Load the Mealworm
With the intention to present as a lot diet as doable to your tarantula it may be sensible to intestine load mealworms. This basically means feeding the mealworms a wealthy and various eating regimen for a day or two earlier than they’re given to your spider.
Whereas there are particular intestine loading formulation supplied for reptile keepers, it may be simply as efficient to supply a variety of fruit and veggies to your mealworms. They’ll eat virtually something you’ll eat from uncooked carrot to apple.
Use Forceps to Decide up Mealworms
Mealworms have a tricky, waxy exoskeleton that many individuals discover fairly disagreeable to the contact. As well as, if you seize maintain of a mealworm they have a tendency to writhe round in an try to flee. This, too, is sort of an disagreeable expertise for some individuals if utilizing your fingers.
To keep away from this expertise it may be sensible to make use of forceps to choose up the mealworms. In fact, there’s nothing fallacious with utilizing your fingers, when you so need.
Drop the Mealworm In Entrance of the Tarantula
As mealworms shortly bury themselves in a tarantula cage it’s price dropping the mealworm proper in entrance of your tarantula. On this approach your tarantula has the absolute best probability to identify the prey merchandise and seize it earlier than it disappears from view.
On the identical time, it’s price giving your tarantula only one mealworm at a time, reasonably than scattering a handful far and huge round their cage.
Drop a mealworm and look ahead to it to be grabbed by the spider. Then if you wish to feed a second mealworm, drop this close by as soon as the primary has been captured. This minimizes the possibilities of unobserved mealworms burying themselves within the substrate.
Shortly Take away Any Uneaten Mealworms
To reiterate a degree made repeatedly all through this information, any mealworms that start to burrow and stay uneaten must be swiftly faraway from the tarantula cage. The one mealworms left within the cage must be those who your tarantula is actively consuming.