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Old 01-29-2003, 05:22 PM   #51
BrianB
Quote:
Lightening bugs are deadly to beardies, even part of one can kill a full grown healthy beardie and they do not affect other reptiles.
I'm curious about the source of this statement, b/c I know that lightning bugs will flat out kill birds and spiders, as well as beardies. The problem specific to beardies and other imported lizards is not a particular sensitivity to the toxins so much as not having ever developed an aversion to eating them, as many NA species of animal have.

Here's a paper on firefly toxins from Cornell News:

http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases...izard.hrs.html

Based on this, I wouldn't feed fireflies to any animal.
 
Old 01-29-2003, 06:14 PM   #52
CheriS
I agree not recommending feeding them to any animals, but other animals do eat them and not seem to be affected. This is from only seeing them eat, not following the animals after, I never even thought of it. Here where I live we have to be very careful when we have the beardies outside that no fireflys are around. We have cuban brown anoles and green ones that do eat them and I have never seen one die. That not saying it may not kill them, just I have never observed it.

From articles in reptile magazines and newspaper reports they have only mentioned them in regards to bearded dragons that I had seen, thank you for the URL to the Cornell study, I can see from it that tree frogs, rock lizard and chameleons have died after eating them.

Even that study mentions the PA zoo that put them outside and the dragons died, test showed it was the fireflies, I never thought about that it could be the other reptiles that were put outside were not eating them and that may be why they were not affected. Would be interesting to see more studies.

It is a good point to avoid letting any animals eat them, better safe than sorry. From what I have read they state it is not the chemical that casue them to "light up" but a self denfense toxin.. do you know any other insects that also have this type of toxin?
 
Old 01-29-2003, 08:24 PM   #53
BrianB
The anoles probably have the advantage of knowing what will kill them and what won't, too. It's interesting that the article notes that beardies eat aussie fireflies, though. I wonder if the aussie flies would kill the anoles....
 
Old 01-29-2003, 09:38 PM   #54
CheriS
Interesting that many australian animals are poisioned by them.

Just for general reference, here is a Picture of a larva of a lightening bug/firefly, I don't know if it would have the same toxins at this strage as the adult does, but it wouldn't hurt to be famaliar with what they look like just in case we spot any in with mealworms we buy. larva stage of lightening bug

Thanks again for that URL, I have been reading a lot of the site it links to also.
 
Old 01-29-2003, 10:30 PM   #55
BrianB
Dang, talk about an ugly baby.

Hey, speaking of ugly bugs, do you guys have these in your area:

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/mark.watson/psg122.htm

These guys are utterly evil. Shoot a really noxious acid when disturbed sometimes. Used to have them all over around us when I was a kid. (In New Port Richey). Got sprayed up the nose and throat by one once, and it was the most irritating thing I've ever experienced. (Military CS gas was mild by comparison.)

Ok, that was off topic, but I was thinking about evil bugs after seeing that larval pic.
 
Old 01-29-2003, 10:51 PM   #56
CheriS
I've never seen that one, but I think it does take the ugly award. We only have the ones that look like brown sticks here. They are native to Belize, so since NPR is close to Tampa Bay, they probably have entered the county through there, I was looking at some of Mark Watsons other pics, gawd....... those are sick! climbing on his face! phew
 

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