laurarfl said:Fertilized duck eggs can usually be found at an Asian market. The incidence of biotin deficiency from the feeding of raw eggs would require the daily feeding of raw eggs as was occurring with monitor owners feeding ab abundance of eggs. Avidin is still present in fertilized eggs. It is used up as the chick develops. So you need not only a fertilized egg, but a well-developed egg. At that point, you might as well feed chicks.
Here is more data from the FWC bioprofile:
Diet information
Tegus have heterodont dentition as adults, with pointed teeth in the front for seizing prey and molariform teeth in the back of their jaws (Dessem 1985). It has been suggested that these blunt posterior teeth are used for crushing hard prey items (Presch 1974, Rieppel
1980), but development of these teeth when tegus weigh 600–750 g (1.32–1.65 lb) does not seem to be correlated with a change in diet to eating hard food items such as mollusks (Dessem 1985). The posterior teeth of the mostly insectivorous juveniles are tricuspid and pointed (Dessem 1985, Norman 1987). Tegus flick their forked tongues to detect and discriminate between food and nonfood odors (Yanosky et al. 1993). The species is omnivorous, feeding on vertebrates, invertebrates, and plant matter, including fruit, seeds, leaves, stems, flowers, and honey. According to Cei (1986), it eats birds, small mammals, insects, mollusks, fishes, amphibians, and fruit. Achaval (1977) claims its food consists mainly of insects, snails, bird eggs, fruits, and vegetables. The stomach
contents of adult T. merianae in Argentina contained, by volume, 66.8 % plant material (primarily fruits), 13.4 % invertebrates, and 20.0 % vertebrates (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994; Table 1). In Brazil, stomach contents, by volume, consisted of 29.0% plant material, 27.8% ants, 27.5% vertebrates, 13.1% mollusks, and minor amounts of
orthopterans, coleopterans, phasmids, and millipedes (Colli et al. 1998). Another study in Brazil found plant material (Vitis and Philodendron fruits), arachnids, coleopterans, large land snail fragments, orthopterans, caterpillars, and rodents (Milstead 1961). Stomach contents, by volume, of juvenile (8.7–29.9 cm SVL) T. merianae in Brazil consisted of 47.7% invertebrates (mostly spiders, othopterans, cockroaches, and
coleopterans), 31.9% plant material (mostly 1 banana), and 15.5% vertebrates (mostly 1 rodent; Table 1); juveniles were also observed feeding on a nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) and house sparrow (Passer domesticus) carcass (Kiefer and Sazima 2002). Fruits or seeds were found in only 2 of 30 juvenile stomachs containing food (Kiefer and Sazima 2002), whereas fruits or seeds were found in 62 of 70 adult stomachs (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994). Tegus are predominantly terrestrial; all fruits eaten belonged to trees with fruits that fall to the ground when ripe, and the birds eaten were chicks of the ground-nesting tinamou (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994). Tegu concentrations are found where ripe Philodendron fruit or fish discarded by fishermen are present (Milstead 1961). Based on food items, tegus apparently enter shallow water to prey upon fish, crabs, and snails (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994). Other items eaten by Tupinambis spp. include mushrooms, frogs, turtle eggs, reptiles, and carrion (Donadío and Gallardo 1984, Dessem 1985, Escalona and Fa 1998, Kiefer and Sazima 2002, Silva and Hillesheim 2004, Toledo et al. 2004). In captivity, tegus fed on 30 species of fruits
from southeastern Brazil ranging in diameter from 0.81 to 10.0 cm, including large fruit adapted for dispersal by large mammals (Castro and Galetti 2004). Seed retention in the gut ranged from 22–24 hr to 43–44 hr, and tegus may be important seed dispersers in the Neotropics (Castro and Galetti 2004). Hungry hatchlings will sometimes cannibalize
smaller, weaker siblings, and adults will eat their own eggs and young (St. Pierre, pers. comm.). If given a choice, adults are more prone to feed on small prey items like insects than large items like dead adult rats (St. Pierre, pers. comm.). A tegu breeder fed his T. merianae rats, turkey meat, eggs, bread, cat food, dog food, pies, tomatoes, cantaloupes, fish, grapes, pears and pitless cherries (Langerwerf and Paris 1998). 11 Table 1. Most common (by number or percent volume) food items for 70 adult T. merianae from northeastern Argentina (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994) and 30 juveniles from southeastern
Brazil (Kiefer and Sazima 2002).
There is also a nice table of data, but I can't post here in the clean format.
Great information,when i was keeping tegus,i would alternate there diet like roaches,quail,mice,grapes,tilapia,ground turkey,chicken peeps and it seemed to really work well for my tegus.
laurarfl said:Blech. Would you like for me to bash it for you? heh heh
laurarfl said:Blech. Would you like for me to bash it for you? heh heh
laurarfl said:Fertilized duck eggs can usually be found at an Asian market. The incidence of biotin deficiency from the feeding of raw eggs would require the daily feeding of raw eggs as was occurring with monitor owners feeding ab abundance of eggs. Avidin is still present in fertilized eggs. It is used up as the chick develops. So you need not only a fertilized egg, but a well-developed egg. At that point, you might as well feed chicks.
Here is more data from the FWC bioprofile:
Diet information
Tegus have heterodont dentition as adults, with pointed teeth in the front for seizing prey and molariform teeth in the back of their jaws (Dessem 1985). It has been suggested that these blunt posterior teeth are used for crushing hard prey items (Presch 1974, Rieppel
1980), but development of these teeth when tegus weigh 600–750 g (1.32–1.65 lb) does not seem to be correlated with a change in diet to eating hard food items such as mollusks (Dessem 1985). The posterior teeth of the mostly insectivorous juveniles are tricuspid and pointed (Dessem 1985, Norman 1987). Tegus flick their forked tongues to detect and discriminate between food and nonfood odors (Yanosky et al. 1993). The species is omnivorous, feeding on vertebrates, invertebrates, and plant matter, including fruit, seeds, leaves, stems, flowers, and honey. According to Cei (1986), it eats birds, small mammals, insects, mollusks, fishes, amphibians, and fruit. Achaval (1977) claims its food consists mainly of insects, snails, bird eggs, fruits, and vegetables. The stomach
contents of adult T. merianae in Argentina contained, by volume, 66.8 % plant material (primarily fruits), 13.4 % invertebrates, and 20.0 % vertebrates (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994; Table 1). In Brazil, stomach contents, by volume, consisted of 29.0% plant material, 27.8% ants, 27.5% vertebrates, 13.1% mollusks, and minor amounts of
orthopterans, coleopterans, phasmids, and millipedes (Colli et al. 1998). Another study in Brazil found plant material (Vitis and Philodendron fruits), arachnids, coleopterans, large land snail fragments, orthopterans, caterpillars, and rodents (Milstead 1961). Stomach contents, by volume, of juvenile (8.7–29.9 cm SVL) T. merianae in Brazil consisted of 47.7% invertebrates (mostly spiders, othopterans, cockroaches, and
coleopterans), 31.9% plant material (mostly 1 banana), and 15.5% vertebrates (mostly 1 rodent; Table 1); juveniles were also observed feeding on a nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) and house sparrow (Passer domesticus) carcass (Kiefer and Sazima 2002). Fruits or seeds were found in only 2 of 30 juvenile stomachs containing food (Kiefer and Sazima 2002), whereas fruits or seeds were found in 62 of 70 adult stomachs (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994). Tegus are predominantly terrestrial; all fruits eaten belonged to trees with fruits that fall to the ground when ripe, and the birds eaten were chicks of the ground-nesting tinamou (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994). Tegu concentrations are found where ripe Philodendron fruit or fish discarded by fishermen are present (Milstead 1961). Based on food items, tegus apparently enter shallow water to prey upon fish, crabs, and snails (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994). Other items eaten by Tupinambis spp. include mushrooms, frogs, turtle eggs, reptiles, and carrion (Donadío and Gallardo 1984, Dessem 1985, Escalona and Fa 1998, Kiefer and Sazima 2002, Silva and Hillesheim 2004, Toledo et al. 2004). In captivity, tegus fed on 30 species of fruits
from southeastern Brazil ranging in diameter from 0.81 to 10.0 cm, including large fruit adapted for dispersal by large mammals (Castro and Galetti 2004). Seed retention in the gut ranged from 22–24 hr to 43–44 hr, and tegus may be important seed dispersers in the Neotropics (Castro and Galetti 2004). Hungry hatchlings will sometimes cannibalize
smaller, weaker siblings, and adults will eat their own eggs and young (St. Pierre, pers. comm.). If given a choice, adults are more prone to feed on small prey items like insects than large items like dead adult rats (St. Pierre, pers. comm.). A tegu breeder fed his T. merianae rats, turkey meat, eggs, bread, cat food, dog food, pies, tomatoes, cantaloupes, fish, grapes, pears and pitless cherries (Langerwerf and Paris 1998). 11 Table 1. Most common (by number or percent volume) food items for 70 adult T. merianae from northeastern Argentina (Mercolli and Yanosky 1994) and 30 juveniles from southeastern
Brazil (Kiefer and Sazima 2002).
There is also a nice table of data, but I can't post here in the clean format.
Great information,when i was keeping tegus,i would alternate there diet like roaches,quail,mice,grapes,tilapia,ground turkey,chicken peeps and it seemed to really work well for my tegus.
Great information,when i was keeping tegus,i would alternate there diet like roaches,quail,mice,grapes,tilapia,ground turkey,chicken peeps and it seemed to really work well for my tegus.
Great information,when i was keeping tegus,i would alternate there diet like roaches,quail,mice,grapes,tilapia,ground turkey,chicken peeps and it seemed to really work well for my tegus.
Great information,when i was keeping tegus,i would alternate there diet like roaches,quail,mice,grapes,tilapia,ground turkey,chicken peeps and it seemed to really work well for my tegus.
