Nutritional Value of Meal Worms and Maggots

[E Orix]

I have spoken to the breeder who started feeding the Maggots banana and in his opinion they are bigger and better than
the ones bred the traditional way. I should point out though he has access to large amounts of Bananas.
As for Maggots, if I could I would stop using fly maggots, I am sick of keeping them going all year and after 15+ years I would love
a rest from them. Sadly they are my back up live food, I can put large amounts out so there is always live food available when the
preferred insects are long gone.
Meal Worms make up the major part of my live food program and my personal opinion is if I didn't feed them certain species
just would produce the numbers I want.
Having said that it depends on species as well, the smaller the bird the less preferred, that is why Cordons, Stars etc. seem to
have the annoying habit of just eating the heads of the Meal Worm and leaving the rest. Generally other birds then eat the rest
so not all is wasted. Over the years I have read that you should boil them first, only feed them in the white skin stage, don't feed
too many and so on. Maybe Golden Song Sparrows have missed these warnings as I have watched them swallow down 3 or 4 then
hold another 4 or so in their beak and off to the nest to feed their chicks.
Termites are most likely the best live food for the smaller Waxbills but not the be all, in fact for Weavers etc. they run second in
my opinion to Meal Worms.
What should we do, feed as much variety as you can and the birds will do the rest.