Insects That Salamanders Eat

All salamanders hunt by movement, while some also respond to odor and touch to find prey. They are carnivorous animals and will eat a variety of live insects. Because they are attracted mostly to movement, they are less likely to eat dead prey than some other carnivorous animals are.

  1. Environment

    • Salamanders are terrestrial, aquatic, or semi-aquatic. The types of insects they hunt will depend on the availability in their environment. On land, they may eat pill bugs, millipedes, aphids, moths, roaches, slugs, and crickets. In the water, they will eat water fleas, small larva, and flying insects that skim along the surface of the water such as flies and mosquitoes.

    Age

    • The size and type of insects eaten will change as the salamander matures. When they are still babies, they need very small prey, such as mosquito larvae and tubiflex worms. Black worms and earthworms can be eaten as well, but only if cut up into small pieces first. Fruit flies are small enough that they can be eaten by both young and mature salamanders, but they may not have enough nutritional content for babies.

    Captivity

    • There are a number of commercially available insects that can be fed to captive salamanders. Meal worms are one of the most popular, though they may not have the best nutritional content. The diet of a captive salamander can include wild caught insects as well as others available through pet stores, including super worms, king worms, black worms, and white worms.

    Warnings

    • Predatory insects such as beetles and dragonflies may be dangerous to feed to baby or juvenile salamanders. If they are larger than the salamander they are being fed to, they can eat them instead. Insects and larva fed to salamanders should be smaller then their head, and no larger than their mouth, if possible.