Who has mealworms?

15 years ago

Haven't posted in a while. Have given up on Sunshine Mealworms. They keep pushing back their dates. Does anyone have any suggestions on a good place to buy? I still have BBs all around.

Hope every one is doing well.

Harold

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Comments (22)

dzyg
15 years ago
I haven't ordered from either of them in awhile but this summer I got my worms from either New York worms or Southeastern Insectaries. SI phone number is 877-967-6777, they had really high next day shipping to guarantee live deliver but I would think this time of year you could go with priority mail. New York worms ships priority but I know someone just had a problem getting an order from them, I hadn't had any problems with them though and they were nice worms. www.nyworms.com

Good luck! I just bought some dried mealworms yesterday and so far they haven't taken any but I am hopeful. I stopped ordering mealies and waxworms awhile ago as I know the Blues will be leaving soon. I have been getting some waxworms from walmart though and put out about 40 2x a day, these are smaller sized waxworms though. I also have the Bluebird suet nuggets out but so far no takers on that either.

Donna
Ann
15 years ago
Southeastern Insectaries is fabulous!

Ann
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Live mealworms may also suffer from relatively slow sales since even people that feed mealworms to their pet lizards, birds, and so on probably don't buy in bulk unless they're a breeder of such critters and therefore would have a constant and possibly even a daily need for such fare. As to a reasonable size to start with? The giant size might feed a few general population birds but without some care, it seems that you'd go though a container pretty quick. The smalls look tiny and you'd probably have to ration out a few more than you'd like to make a container last any amount of time. The medium size is what I'd try if I were that interested in feeding mealworms to draw in certain species. Price is right and there are enough that your mealworm experiment could last long enough for observation of any species that are drawn in just because of that addition to whatever you've been feeding on a regular basis. Long ago, I decided that within reason, if I had to ration what relatively small amount of funds I use for feeding the wildlife that comes to my little backyard compared to the enjoyment it brings me, I'd probably just take down my feeders and quit buying raw peanuts for the blue jays and that one damn ornery (but cute) squirrel that visits daily. I fully realize that not every budget is flexible enough to do that but I figure that I'm only here on this earth for a short while so why not enjoy what impacts my life and brings joy to my eyes while I'm here. Perusing a few websites on raising your own mealworms seems to be quite popular and while it doesn't look like the initial outlay would be much, would you use enough of the little buggers to make it worthwhile even if you just counted time and what space is required? Reading over those sites does remind me of a time not that long ago when every fishing and hunting magazine in existence (and they may still have them) had ads touting raising your own bigger and better fishing worms! "Yes Friends, you too can raise enough of my extra special extra large energetic red wigglers and nightcrawlers to go fishing any time you want and you'll never run out of fish bait!!!! Get your starter pack of worms NOW and in only days you'll have more worms than you can use. Send only $19.95 to PO Box XXXX, to get started." Not... Problem is that nightcrawlers won't live south of the Mason Dixon line unless you keep them in a refrigerator and most little red wigglers are just on the borderline of being so small that you almost have to use tweezers to put them on your fish hook. Too, both types have to be kept practically n the dark to keep them happy, temperature and moisture levels have to be maintained and appropriate worm food is not as easy to manage as they would have you think. Oh wait... the subject was mealworm acquisition, not fishin' worms. It appears I have strayed off subject again. Sorry bout that.
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coastalblue
15 years ago
Harold.....I'm the one Donna is speaking about having trouble getting my orders from nyworms.....and once again i've ordered and it has taken a week to get them but they do arrive in good shape....i asked my postmaster why its taking that long for priority from New York to Alabama and she said it should in no way take that long....3 to 4 days at the most is all it should take so i dont know whats happening between there and here....maybe you live closer and it wont take near that long as Donna doesnt seem to have any trouble....good luck !!!

Bren
erictammy
15 years ago
I ordered some from Grubco a few weeks ago.
Tammy
anita55
15 years ago
i ordered from SI and the mealworms were small, not the size I ordered. I haven't bothered to re-order since their is still plenty of natural food around.
dzyg
15 years ago
I had forgotten about that anita, SI did have small worms. New York worms has nice bigs ones. My Blues have been eating the dried mealworms lately. It has been freezing just about every morning here this week, don't think there are many live bugs around anymore, but they probably find some here and there. I expect the Blues to pack up and leave any day now. I have one more small container of Waxworms which they will get today and then that is it for them too. I have slowly weaned them down to only one small serving of waxworms a day. Looking forward to the next nesting season already. LOL!! I really don't like Winter and it is almost here.

Donna
blue_happy
Original Author
15 years ago
I finally broke down yesterday and got some locally...small and expensive, but I miss seeing the BBs close up!

Harold
griffin_MD
15 years ago
I just placed an order with NY Worms yesterday and they will ship on Monday. I've only ever ordered from Grubco, but their large size mealworms are unavailable. I'm anxious to see the delivery--a bit expensive, $45 for 5,000, but if the quality is good then I'll be happy. Grubco's shipping costs have gotten ridiculous--last order I paid more for the shipping than I did for the worms! NY Worms didn't charge for shipping, but their initial cost is so much more expensive than Grubco that I'm fairly certain the final cost would be the same with either company. We'll see.
Kathy
Brenda
15 years ago
I've been feeding my blues wax worms. They are plentiful and I'm finding that the bluebirds love them more than mealworms! I get my mealworms from Rainbow. They haven't had any mealworms for months and months - but they DO have waxworms. My blues just suck them up and are happy campers with the waxworms.
dmarieok
15 years ago
are the still eating the waxworms? We have around 5 to 7 blues around here and it is starting to freeze at night and they overwinter here...Sunshine has now pushed their dates to first of the year with no explanation for the mealies...pretty frustrating...
Brenda
15 years ago
Oh yes - they scarf the waxworms down. I think that next season I'll feed waxworms from the get-go. They are very soft and squishy and the bluebirds absolutely love them.
griffin_MD
15 years ago
My shipment from NY Worms arrived yesterday and the worms look great! Only 1 dead one in the whole batch. The order was shipped on Monday and took until Friday to arrive, which is a couple of days longer than Grubco. I'd say the quality is the same as Grubco, though. Wonder why NY Worms has the large size mealworms available and no one else seems to?
Kathy
nature_david
15 years ago
If there is a WBU near you, just buy some from there. They have in 500, 1000, 5000, and I think maybe even 10000 increments.
organicgardener
15 years ago
Here is what NY mealworms says on their website about their giant mealworms:

The so-called "Giant" Mealworms are created by spraying "common" Mealworms with an insect growth hormone to keep them growing instead of pupating as they would normally. Because of this, we feel that the "Giants" are a poor food choice for your Reptiles. However, we do highly recommend them as fishing bait!
griffin_MD
15 years ago
The mealworms I ordered from NY Worms are the large size, just about an inch or so long--the same as Grubco's large size. Several of the other suppliers I checked were all out of this size. As for getting worms from WBU, I sometimes do it in a pinch but it's way too expensive if you're feeding on a regular basis. I think our Wild Bird Garden store is selling them 500 for between $6 and $7. Their prices have also gone up a bit due to the shortage, at least locally.
Kathy
Ann
15 years ago
Southeast Insectaries's worms may be smaller than expected...I'm not sure since I've only ordered from them, but they fatten up a LOT in a week.

I just got an order of 10,000 worms; $41 for the worms so $20.50 per 5000, and then I paid $8.90 for DHL ground shipping which arrives in 2 days.

I was able to order from them when no one else had worms. And their service is unbeatable.

And I don't work for them!! LOL!

Ann
vonyon
15 years ago
My birds never eat worms after about August. They do love the suet though as long as I crumble it up. It sure is cheaper.
Ann
15 years ago
No question it's cheaper. I feel pretty silly spending all this money, but I'm so worried they'll leave! My blues still LOVE their mealworms! They come every morning and gorge themselves. It's a wonderful thing. But I have suet out there too for later in the day. Not sure if they're eating it, but someone sure is!

Ann
traci_mightymealies
15 years ago
I have been breeding large mealworms (approx. 1") in Bernville, PA for over 1 year now. Due to my success, I began a business in October 2008. I am still working on the cycles in order to have an on-going supply and, unfortunately, my supply is low right now. If I can help anyone out that is close, please contact me at 610-488-9008 or mightymealies@yahoo.com. Since my business is still new, I have not begun to think about shipping my stock......sorry!
bluebars
15 years ago
Good to know. My local source, a small wild bird shop, went out of business and closed a few days ago (in Ellicott City MD). I sure will miss them!
Let us know if you consider shipping.
BlueBars
traci_mightymealies
15 years ago
Once my stock gets large enough for local supply and demand, I will look into shipping and post the results. I look forward to the day that I can start a webpage too. Thanks for your support bluebars.
timothy_birdlover
15 years ago
I'm getting them from Doctors Foster & Smith web site and have had my blues all winter in the eastern panhandle of WV, a family of four come several times a day. I also keep a good supply of Bluebird Banquet in the box feeder. If I don't put the worms out, they eat the banquet up pretty good.

GS-261576 Can O' Worms 1.2 oz. Quantity discount has been applied. $3.99 x 6 = $23.94
Subtotal = $23.94

Who has mealworms?

Comments (22)

dzyg

Ann

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Who has mealworms?

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