If you love chickens, you will know that chickens love to eat insects. Not only do the insects like grub worms for chickens provide essential nutrients to the diet of chickens, but those worms also help you to manage your flock of chickens and have them back into the coop whenever required.
Among various insects, grub worms and mealworms are the most common options to feed your chickens. However, since those two are not the same insects; hence they have different levels of nutrients.
Discussed below are their specifications that will help you to determine which one will be a better choice for your chickens. Although they are called grub worms, they are not real worms. They are the larval life-stage of different species of beetles and black soldier flies.
These have a creamy white color and six legs, and a rusty orange head.
Those legs are located at the front portion of their body. These worms are popular because are really good. On the other hand, mealworms are the larval life-stage of the mealworm beetles, a species of darkling beetle.
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What are the specifications of grub worms for chickens and mealworms?
Starting with their physical differences, the fly grub worms are the larvae of the black soldier fly. Those are non-invasive and harmless fly species because they do not bite, sting, or cause harm in any way and they are not considered crop pests or garden pests.
Those grub worms do not transmit diseases like many other flies.
Instead, they work to sanitize food. Those larvae usually contain anti-microbial properties that help by breaking down bacteria in the food that they eat in the growth stage of their larvae.
Like other insects, those black soldier flies need to go through a complete procedure of metamorphosis that includes egg, larvae, pupa, and of course, adult phase. The lifecycle of these insects usually takes about 45 days to complete.
However, when used for commercial purposes, those lifecycles are completed within just 15 days. The short period of time that requires the growth of those black soldier flies makes these grubs a popular insect to rise for boosting the economy.
During the life cycle of a black soldier fly, those grubs are dried at the larva life stage.
During this stage or larvae, those grub worms have an excessive appetite. Thus, those are considered as the piranhas in the world of insects.
They can easily consume food that is twice the amount of their own body weight each day. Those grub worms for chicken can eat anything, including decaying organic matter, food waste, and manure.
Thus, those insects are known as the tiniest powerhouse recyclers of the world. However, depending on where those worms are farmed, their food choices may vary.
Mealworms are the larvae of the beetle. This is one of those insects that are considered crop pests because they usually consume plant leaves and young seedlings. Similar to those grub worms, these worms also have different stages in their life cycle, including egg, larvae, pupa, and also adult.
Though their lifecycle may take near about one year, those can be raised within 40 to 50 days for commercial purposes. The larvae of this insect have an incredible amount of appetite, and they can easily consume various types of foods as well.
Therefore, both grub worms and mealworms are not exactly similar; however, you can have grub worms for chickens.
