ABSTRACT

Crickets, Acheta domesticus, are commonly fed special diets to alter their nutrient content (especially with regard to calcium) to make them a more complete diet for insectivorous reptiles and amphibians. Calcium-fortified dry diets are used by zoos to increase a crickets' calcium content and a variety of products are available in pet stores for the hobbyist. In this experiment we compare the moisture, calcium and phosphorus content of small cricket nymphs and adult crickets offered an experimental dry calcium-fortified gut loading diet with those fed four commercial dry diets. An unfortified dry diet served as a negative control. Crickets fed the experimental calcium-fortified dry diet and one of the commercial products (T-Rex® Calcium Plus™ Food for Crickets) contained sufficient calcium to meet the estimated requirements of insectivorous reptiles and significantly more calcium than those fed the other treatments. Crickets fed the other three commercial products contained no more calcium than those fed an unfortified diet and would likely be considered calcium deficient when used as food for insectivorous reptiles. Cricket nymphs contained significantly more moisture (as is basis) and phosphorus (dry weight basis) than adult crickets but neither were affected by diet. Despite marketing claims on three of the four products suggesting their use as a calcium source for gut loading crickets, only one of the commercial foods tested was effective in increasing the calcium content of crickets.