Mealworms

[helenol]

Somebody told me today that mealworms are capable of "eating their way out of a bird"!

Surely this can't be so? If it is so, does this apply to the mini-mealworm?

I've noticed the bluetits seem to "strip" the mealworm, but the others just gulp them down, and I've not seen any birds walking around with worms protruding from their bodies/beaks...yet

H

[Nina P]

Never heard anything of the sort, and my Robins, blackbirds, nuthatches, blue tits and all the many other birds that take them don't seem to think so either!
I think someone is telling "old wives tales" as birds wouldn't take anything that disagreed with them more than once, and the rate my birds come back for more, must speak volumes. Nina.

[Elizabeth Bigg]

This sounds ridiculous - we've been feeding mealworms to our robins and bluetits for years now. We had a particularly tame robin several years ago who came when I called, and used to come looking for me through various windows when the supply of mealworms had run out. He was around for 2 or 3 years - the only hand tame robin we have had.

Helen, we've noticed that bluetits seem to "fillet" the worms before taking them to the nest, or feeding themselves, whereas robins just gulp them down whole.

[helenol]

I thought so.

BTW, I've just gone out into the garden and found one of my robins killed by the cat, it was one of the adults. At least I'm assuming it was the cat. :-(

[Elizabeth Bigg]

Condolences, Helen - it's always sad to find a corpse, though I wonder where we would be if all the birds survived to a ripe old age!

Another thought on mealworms - my husband has just pointed out that mealworms are vegetarians!!!

[helenol]

Elizabeth, that was also another thought I had. I think it's either an old wives tale, or there is another type of insect that could possibly do damage, thereby I'd assume the birds wouldn't touch it.

What brought this on, was that the small duckling I am taking care of (see my post on duckling), has had a couple of worms. He is now 11 days old, and I was told that he would really enjoy them as a treat, in addition to the chickcrumbs he is eating.

However when I was told that, I nearly had a heart attack, and kept watching him for signs of illness!!

I am pleased to say, the duck is thriving :-)

[smeltmill]

Dear Helen,

A silly story.

A word of warning – Fishing tackle shops sell huge ones that look like the Lambton Worm. Do NOT buy these as they have been fed growth promoters.
Fortunately they will not pupate so can not breed.

Do you rear your own?

Yours etc.
Gordon Boreham-Styffe.

[helenol]

No I don't, although I am thinking of it (worms that is, not ducks)

The mealworms I buy are from a reputable website, and are always of the mini variety. I also buy from the local petshop, and they are always of good quality, small etc.


Regards
H

[Elizabeth Bigg]

Helen - if you decide to have a go at breeding mealworms, you'll find Chris Mead's book "Robins" helpful. This is where we learned how to do it - but don't worry about finding a biscuit tin 100cm deep, he got his units a bit confused! We actually use ordinary household buckets. The RSPB also have a factsheet about mealworms.

Glad to hear the duckling is thriving - does it have a name?

[helenol]

thanks for the advice Elizabeth.

No it doesn't, but it will be going back to the neighbour soon to be with all the other ducks. The thing is, it thinks I am its mother now, as it is a lone duck, as all it's brothers and sisters died, and its mother rejected it.

Apparantly, although it may fret at the beginning, it will latch itself to another duck or chicken, so hopefully it will live a happy life.

I say, give every teenager in the UK a lone duckling to look after - believe me it will put them off having kids for life, or at least lower the rate of teenage pregnancy!! :-)

H

[Elizabeth Bigg]

Helen - they'll probably not realise that human babies are even worse - and take far longer to grow up too!

[Tony_InDevon]

On the subject of bird feed if you are anti-GM, be careful where you buy your feed from. Here in Totnes someone tried to check if their imported feed could be from GM crops & it seems a loophole means that very few suppliers are checking.

[Tony_InDevon]

Sorry forgot to post the bit that this "old wives tale" about mealworms is like the one from when I used to go coarse fishing.

That one said that if you swollowed the maggots they would develop inside you. Tasted quite good with jam butties as it happens. ;)

[helenol]

Nice one Tony. I still can't help checking on the duck to see if she's turning into a wormduck :-)

[Fuchsia]

"I say, give every teenager in the UK a lone duckling to look after - believe me it will put them off having kids for life, or at least lower the rate of teenage pregnancy!! :-)"

Absolutely right - I raised 3 last year and have never known such mess and destruction in all my life!

Jen

[helenol]

Fuschia, yes, my little duckling was returned to the neighbour next door but one. She has now settled down with the other ducks. I did go and see her, but was quite disappointed she didn't waddle up to me with open wings shouting "mummy" :-)

[Gill Osborne]

I used to work in a petshop which had a fish and reptile department and we sold live food such as mealworms.I do remember someone once telling me that mealworms shouldn't be fed live to certain small lizards as they would eat their way out of the reptile! Never actually found out wether it was true or not!!! So, when we moved to this house last year, and I had a proper garden for the first time and started to feed the birds I WAS a bit dubious about putting out the mealworms.I had visions of having to cut their heads off so that they couldn't nibble their way out of the birds...YUCH! But, during the breeding season this year, we had so many baby birds coming into the garden and I read somewhere that mealworms were recommended for them to make the parents job easier that I put some out in a tub. Once the birds discovered them they didn't last long!!! Especially the starlings...more like a plague of squabbling locusts!!! And as far as I can tell none of 'my' birds has suffered any ill effects.
I know the giant mealworms you mean...and they ARE huge!!!One of the women on the till in the petshop was TERRIFIED of even the normal sized ones and whenever a customer bought some the staff on the fish department had to put them in a brown bag so she didn't have to look at them! Well,one day she was being an even bigger cow than normal so when a customer bought a bag of the giant mealies we weighed them up and gave them to one of our new members of staff(who was totally ignorant of her fear) to take down to the till! Well, let's just say her scream could be heard in the tearoom in the back of the shop...he he he!!! Even now I laugh about it!!! It was almost impossible for me to keep a straight face when I went down to the till and innocently asked what was wrong! I had to take over as she needed to go and sit down for ten minutes!!! Wouldn't recommend the giant ones for the birds though...I don't think the birds could cope...have visions of giant mealies wrapping themselves around my resident two woodpigeons like an Anaconda!!!

[helenol]

Gill, I always feed the birds the small mealworms. the larges ones do seem a little big for the smallers birds.

[Elizabeth Bigg]

"I used to work in a petshop which had a fish and reptile department and we sold live food such as mealworms.I do remember someone once telling me that mealworms shouldn't be fed live to certain small lizards as they would eat their way out of the reptile! Never actually found out wether it was true or not!!!"

Gill, this discussion was over on the BBC board some months ago, and it was decided that this was an urban myth!! - and anyway, mealworms are vegetarian.

We have a breeding programme, but it often doesn't keep up with demand, so we buy the mini size and grow them on for 2 or 3 weeks. We also buy the regular size when necessary. There are several mail order suppliers - our petshop also sells them, but the quality is sometimes a bit dodgy.

[Jasonbirder]

On the subject of Mealworms (and I know this is very basic) How do you feed them to the birds:- Specifically do you put them in a dish/container/loose on the bird table/special feeder?
I`ve got everything else on my trees and table - but would like to put something special for my Robins and Dunnocks!

[Elizabeth Bigg]

On the subject of Mealworms (and I know this is very basic) How do you feed them to the birds:- Specifically do you put them in a dish/container/loose on the bird table/special feeder?
I`ve got everything else on my trees and table - but would like to put something special for my Robins and Dunnocks!

At first we put them in a dish (hamster food bowl) on a shelf outside the dining room window, then changed to a feeder fastened to the window via two suckers - if you go to our website, and look at Monday 5th (parts 1 and 3), there are some photos. At first we put it low down, near the shelf, but the squirrels soon found it - they have not (yet) managed to get to it in its new postion higher up the window.

The shelf is now outside the study window, and the birds have already discovered it. The bluetits are much braver than the robins - they sit there quite happily when I turn my head to look at them, but the robin is off at the slightest movement. The dish is rather less than a metre from where I am sitting right now. I think you might need to put a dish on the ground for dunnocks - I rarely see them anywhere else, though just once in a while I see one on the bird table. If the blackbirds discover them, you'll need to take out a mortgage - we had a blackbird nicknamed "hoover", and finally we decided we had to restrict access via an upturned hanging basket frame.

[Nina P]

Jason I put them on the bird table in the middle of loose seed, just to keep them on the table long enough, but I can assure you they dont stay long, especially when the birds are used to your delivery time!!

[dylan]

Jason, Robins will readily take mealworms from the hand once they associate you with the mealworms, & when you get used to handling the wriggly blighters!
It also makes the mealworms last longer.

Robin taking mealworms photo (http://www.birdforum.net/pp_gallery/data/527/204dm_robin_flight.jpg)

I've also got a couple of videos on my website here (http://www.digidylan.co.uk/video/video_index.htm)

[Gill Osborne]

Thanks Elizabeth...thought I'd seen the question somewhere before!!! Don't often find the time to look at the BBC forum board as BF takes up most of my spare time!!! Have to do my jobs around the house first before I 'reward' myself with a look at BF!!!!!!!

[Elizabeth Bigg]

Thanks Elizabeth...thought I'd seen the question somewhere before!!! Don't often find the time to look at the BBC forum board as BF takes up most of my spare time!!! Have to do my jobs around the house first before I 'reward' myself with a look at BF!!!!!!!

You're not missing much, Gillian - I still have a look, and occasionally post there, but............................!

How disciplined you are - I'm glad I'm not like that! ;)

[Jasonbirder]

Thanks for the mealworm advice everyone...will let you know how well they go down!

[Elizabeth Bigg]

Thanks for the mealworm advice everyone...will let you know how well they go down!

Very rapidly, once the birds discover them!