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nightcrawlers vs redwigglers

N

nativecollector

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thats a funny topic in itself

anyhow,
I am not feeding anything specific with them right now, what I am wondering is which is more benificial in the food department. Most of the things that I have eat store bought critters, but where I live I have a ton of both eathworms and redwigglers. Plus most of the things I have are not cbb, they are wild cought for the most part. (frogs, turtles, skinks, and snakes) So these guys eat these worms in the wild and if I can give them some in captivity then it would be great. How would you gut load them, I have a wooden worm box already built and ready to raise them, but before I fill er up with worms I want to get the better of the two. I have already loaded the dirt that is in there with some good smelly stuff, horse poop and coffee grounds. (lol what a combo, lunch anyone) So when it is feeding time for the caged critters how and what would I use to make the worms of more value to them.

responses please, just keep in mind I dont have the normal pet trade critters, mine are all native ones to my area. Eastern North Carolina
 
Just wondering if I palced this in the wrong forum or does no one have the answer to this. Only a little over 20 views and no answers. If this would be better suited in a different forum can a mod please move it.
 
Drop the manure and coffee grounds. Don't use them for this purpose.

All you need to do is take your normal, PLANT BASED kitchen waste, the same stuff that people compost, whirr it in a good blender or food processor and mix it in with a good top soil. You only need to add more of this mixture periodically. Just pour it over the top and mix it in gently. How often you add it and how much depends on how many worms you are feeding.

As with all other dietary recommendations, variety is best. Choose quality over garbage. It is a good idea to avoid using heavily waxed and oiled skins from fruits and certain vegetables. Also, make sure that any plant stuff you use has been adequately washed to remove pesticides and herbicides. Other wise use organic if you can get it.

If you use bagged soil make sure that there is no fertilizer in it. All you need is just plain dirt. Don't use soil-less potting mix. If the soil has come from outside bake it in the oven at about 250 F for about 30 minutes to sterilize it before you add the worms and plant slurry.

Never add any animal or dairy products or waste. You're not feeding plants, you're feeding worms. There is really no practical way to "gut load" like with feeder insects. The plan of action is to maintain them on a quality, organic mix.

The substrate has to be kept moist but not wet. And, you have to keep them from freezing.

Good luck with the worm ranching.
 
Ok that sounds good, I will go that route.
How about peat, would that be better than top soil, I have access to a very large peat field. Also which would be better to raise the reds or the nightcrawlers. After reading the title again I realized what I said was incorrect. Red wigglers are earthworms too, I just wanted to clear that up, if only for myself.

Something else is there any market for these type of worms in the pet trade. Like I had mentioned I am raiseing these for some of my native animals that would eat them in the wild. But how about the normal pet trade reptiles.
 
I suppose peat would be fine as a base. It is acidic and would discourage overgrowth of decomp bacteria and mold. But I bet it will be lacking in certain minerals and micronutrients that soil would provide. My choice would be to use both as the substrate foundation.

Which would be the better choice? Depends on the size of the animals eating the worms. You could do both in the same container.

Is there a market? Can't say. There already are other suppliers for the same product. It depends on what kind of interest you would have locally. People use earthworms for different reasons. Obviously they are desired for fish bait. But composters use them too. And of course they are fed to reptiles. Pet trade reptiles would include certain turtles, certain snakes-like ringnecks, and certain lizards-like Physignathus and Acanthosaurus. I fed them to my Savanna monitor. Not as a daily staple, but for the variety.

My bet would be that it is a specialized market. Unlike crickets and mealworms that are fed to a greater variety of animals. This is where you will have to do your research. Find out which animals will feed on them and market to owners of these animals. I know that nutritionally they offer a significant amount of calcium. Anyone buying earthworms to feed to a reptile would probably prefer to purchase feeders that have been raised to be food over those raised to be bait.
 
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