I am really looking foward to start my own little breeding farm for my beardie. After reading several topic on the subject, the opinions seems really different from one to another. So basically I'm looking for the ultimate feeder and it's advantages. So which ones are easier to breed and which ones should I scratch right off the list?
Personally I think Dubia roaches are the best . they are easy to take care of, hardly no smell, they don't make noise, they put rabbits to shame :mrgreen: and the best reason my dragons love them :love10:
Half those listed are extremely difficult to breed on your own. Butter Worms are shipped sterile....so you can't breed them. Phoenix worms are very tough to breed, and rather gross. Hornworms are also tough to breed, and the same goes for silk worms.
Only superworms, crickets, and mealies are easy enough to even attempt. Roaches by far are easier to breed, but their output is not as good....so its a trade off I guess.
Also, depending on the species of roach used, the breeding rate can be average (dubia), above average (discoidalis, hybrids, posticus), or down right crazy (Turkistans and lobsters). So I suggest widening your scope of interest if you are thinking about roaches.
Read people's sigs, just to make sure they don't have a hidden agenda.
I chose to start my first breeding attempt with Dubias.
Keep in mind with worms you usually have various life phases to account for to get them to breed (PW = maggot to fly, mealworms and superworms I think have to become beetles). What I liked about Dubias is that they have live birth - no eggs or pupas or cocoons or incubators to deal with. You have a male and female roach, they breed, and you have baby roaches that grow to adult size. About as simple as it gets. Give them the bare bones basic environment and care(rubbermaid tub, screen lid top, warm temp, simple food, water crystals, and just leave them be and let them breed).
I also like that they don't chew on your Beardie at night if one gets loose in the tank (like crickets). And they won't bite you or your Beardie like Super Worms. And as gross as the idea of roaches are to me, I really can't handle when a super worm goes ALIEN! :!:
I breed supers for Randal and while it takes a while to go from worm to alien to beetle to egg to worm again, they're easy to care for - just make sure they've got fresh food and keep the different life stages separate and they pretty much do the rest.
I'd like to try roaches, I've heard a lot of good about them, but they're hard to come by in Canada.