Leopard gecko diets consist of crickets, “calci worms” (calcium-rich insects) and waxworms no larger than their head size. All insects should be dusted with multivitamin reptile powder to ensure an ideal calcium to phosphorous ratio.
Researchers report on an astonishing spectacle: Western banded geckos shaking off poisonous scorpions in an extraordinary show, as recorded by footage shot of these remarkable animals in Sonoran Desert.
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Mealworms
Additionally to powdered gecko food and live feeder insects, canned or dried mealworms may provide a well-balanced diet for your lizard. However, as too many can lead to malnutrition if fed too frequently in one sitting.
Mealworms are larvae of darkling beetles (Tenebrio Molitor). Mealworms have hard, protective outer bodies composed of chitin.
Crestie owners should take caution not to allow their crestie to break the shell or consume the skeleton of mealworms since this could cause digestive problems for their pet. Mealworms should only be eaten occasionally, rather than becoming part of regular meals for cresties. It can also be very entertaining watching their transformation from larva to pupa and then beetle adulthood; watching this transformation process is truly amazing and something every crestie owner should witness as its results include six real insect legs and wings!
Crickets
Crickets are insects from the order Orthoptera and distant relatives of grasshoppers. Their cylinder-shaped bodies, six legs, long antennae, and wings allow some species to fly. Male crickets make familiar chirping noises by scraping together their front wings – this action is known as stridulation.
Cricket species inhabit many habitats around the world, from wetlands and ponds to forests edges and clearings; desert areas; and caves. Most are active at nighttime.
The omnivorous cricket feeds on plant matter such as fruits, leaves, flowers, seeds, grasses and fungi. It may also prey upon small animals and even other crickets for food; its camouflage provides some protection from potential predators while an elongated ovipositor (used for egg-laying) provides further shielding from harm.
Crickets can be an irritation indoors, with their constant chirping interfering with sleep and activities like reading. Furthermore, their destruction to plants may prove costly. Pangea’s Growth & Breeding Formula for crested geckos contains extra protein to provide them with what they require without adding crickets to the environment.
Insects
Insects may be commonly thought of as bugs or creepy-crawlies, but these creatures belong to the Arthropoda (which also encompasses crustaceans, arachnids, and millipedes). Their hard external skeletons called exoskeletons can be shed just like skin.
Insect bodies are composed of multiple segments arranged around a head, thorax and abdomen. The head typically features sensory antennae as well as two compound eyes and zero to three simple (ocelli) eyes that detect light or movement.
Insects provide essential vitamins, minerals and protein that leopard geckos need. You can easily breed them at home and supplement their nutrition with vegetables, fruit and old CGD pellets to further increase their value. They should be kept in tall tubs to prevent them jumping out. Crested geckos fed insects along with balanced diets have shown faster growth due to protein from insects aiding calcium absorption.
Fruit
Crested geckos are known to eat an array of insects and mature fruits in their native habitat. By supplementing your crested gecko’s diet with fresh fruit, you will ensure it remains healthy and stimulated.
Fruits high in potassium content such as bananas should be avoided as they contain chemicals which bind calcium, potentially leading to deformities of crested geckos’ cresties. Most prepared lizard diets specifically designed for crested geckos (Pangea Gecko Diet with Insects or Repashy Grubs N’ Fruit) already include natural fruits and essentials that will meet all their dietary requirements without supplementing with additional fruit.
Or you could offer live dusted crickets and/or small insects on a weekly basis to add variety to their diet. Both the Pangea Gecko Diet with Insects and Repashy Crested Gecko Diet offer this as they contain high quality proteins, minerals and vitamins in balanced packages – just remember to gut load their prey first before dusting with multivitamin powder before offering.