Imagine eating the same thing every day. The exact. Same. Thing. Even if it was your favorite food, you’d eventually grow to hate it. Pizza… Again?!?!? Not only would you start to dislike whatever your food of choice was, but you would also pretty quickly start to see nutritional deficiencies as well.
As humans, we need a varied diet. Not only do we need a good mix of the three macronutrients, protein, fat, and carbs, but our health benefits from a mix of foods within those macronutrient categories.
Bearded dragons are no different. While they might not develop pallet fatigue like a human would (Our beardie, Bacardi, is never less than frantically ecstatic to see roaches to eat!), they do benefit nutritionally when we take the time to vary their food.
Most worms do not make an ideal regular feeder insect for bearded dragons, but they do make good treats. They don’t have the complete nutritional profile needed to properly nourish a beardie. One exception to this is the black soldier fly larva. This “worm” can effectively be used as a daily feeder.
How to vary your bearded dragon’s food
To see all the foods you can and can’t feed a bearded dragon, make sure and check out our complete bearded dragon food list with 237 different foods listed. We’ll show you what’s safe, what’s not, and what the healthiest food choices are for your beardie!!!
When it comes to greens, this is easy. Your local grocery store will probably have most, if not all, of the items listed on our bearded dragon food guide (check it out here, we are very proud of it!). Every week you can pick something different for your beardie’s salads!
This is not so easy when it comes to their protein source. The only readily available feeder insect in most areas are crickets. This means that by default, a lot of bearded dragons dine solely on crickets.
We decided never to bring crickets into our home and have opted for dubia roaches instead. You can see why in our comparison here.
Once every few weeks, we place an order online, and they are shipped to and held at our post office for pickup. I always get the best looks when postal workers hand me the box clearly labeled “live insects” on the outside!
Because we order Bacardi’s feeders online, that gives us the opportunity to order a few things other than roaches. (We aren’t affiliated with them, but we’ve had amazingly good service and always high-quality insects from dubiaroaches.com)
We like to mix it up a little and usually order Bacardi some nice, juicy worms along with her dubia roaches. She has come to absolutely love this treat and has developed her favorites over time.
Worms are a treat. Most types of worms do not make a good primary nutritional source of protein for a bearded dragon.
Sure, there are other things we could do to vary her protein, but worms are easy to care for, easy to get, and there is a wide variety to choose from. Most places that sell roaches also sell at least one variety of worm.
Their fat content is too high. They often contain too much phosphorus in relation to their calcium content. And they don’t usually represent the full spectrum of nutrients found in a primary feeder like dubia roaches or crickets.
Another important note is that you typically can’t gut load worms in the same way you can crickets and roaches. What you feed your feeder insects by default also gets fed to your beardie. It’s an important part of the feeding cycle for your bearded dragon.
That means that your bearded dragon will have to get used to a primary diet of either crickets or roaches. Most beardies will love this. It’s rare to see a bearded dragon refuse to eat either one of those staple feeder insects. But that doesn’t mean they won’t also love the occasional wormy treat!
*Side note… If your beardie is a juvenile or younger (or you are willing to feed your beardie a large number of these), there is one type of worm that can serve as an excellent primary protein source. This is the larvae of the black soldier fly, covered below.
Types of worms you can feed a bearded dragon
As I mentioned above, not only can you mix up your bearded dragon’s diet by introducing the occasional worm, but you can also vary the type of worm you use for those treats!
The most common types of worms you can feed a bearded dragon are:
- Butterworms
- Mealworms
- Waxworms
- Super worms
- Silkworms
- Hornworms
- Phoenix worms*
- Calci worms*
- Repti worms*
- Nutri grubs*
*These are all actually the same thing. Each is a trademarked brand name for the larvae of the black soldier fly, also known as a hermetia illucens. More on those later!
Each of these worm types has pros and cons. All can make tasty treats for your beardie. As long as you mix things up, you can cycle through them and keep a nice variety in the diet of your bearded dragon.
That said, let’s take a closer look at each worm type.
Butter Worms
Butter worms (chilecomadia moorei) are the larva of the Chilean moth. They can grow up to 1-1.5 inches in length and are soft and rather plump. They are typically a brighter yellow or yellowish-red color and are fairly active as far as worms go. Their coloring and movement make them appetizing feeders for your bearded dragon.
Store butter worms in your fridge where they can last quite a long time. Never use them as feeders if you see mold growing in their container, but otherwise, if they are alive, feed away!
Pros
- Color and smell attract your beardie
- Easy to care for
- High in calcium
- If stored in your fridge at 45℉-50℉ (7℃-13℃), they can live for 1-2 months
Cons
- High in fat
- Need to be kept dry, or they will die
- It may be against local laws to ship them to Hawaii, Louisiana, Oregon, or West Virginia
Butter worms are best used for a feeder when you have a picky bearded dragon. Some beardies are very particular about their protein source, and the lively movement, bright color, and fruity smell of butter worms appeal to even the most discerning bearded dragon!
Mealworms
Mealworms (tenebrio molitor) are the larva of the darkling beetle. Standard feeders grow to .5-.75” in length. There is a “giant” variety that can grow to 1.5”. They are a golden color and semi-active.
Store mealworms in the door of your fridge, where they can live up to 45 days.
Pros
- Easy to source
- Inexpensive
- High in vitamins A & B
- High in protein
Cons
- Their thicker exoskeletons can be hard to digest for some beardies, so they’re not recommended as a frequent food source or treat
- You have to leave them out at room temp for about 24 hours for them to become active and thus attract the attention of your beardie.
Mealworms are best used when you want a feeder worm to use as an occasional treat. Since they are easy to store and live a long time, you can keep them in your fridge for long periods without worrying about them dying.
Waxworms
