The effect of two different defatted insect meals in Japanese quail diets on the performance, ileal morphometry, apparent ileal digestibility and blood parameters

There is a pressure to replace soybean meal in poultry diets with alternative protein sources, in order to ensure the sustainability of animal nutrition. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of two insect meals on performance, ileal morphometry, organs weight and blood biochemical parameters in Japanese quail. A total of 600 seven-day-old unsexed Japanese quail were equally divided into three groups (with four replicates each). The first group was the Control group (C) without insect meals (0 g/kg). The two experimental groups received diets containing 100 g/kg of defatted mealworm meal (TM) or defatted black soldier fly larvae meal (HI). The trial lasted from 7th to 47th days of birds age. Defatted black soldier fly larvae meal positively affected body weight gain in starter phase and provided comparable results in other parameters to the C group. Whereas defatted mealworm meal showed some negative effects on growth, ileal morphology and ileal digestibility of crude protein. Several blood parameters were changed significantly over time (P < 0.05), indicating that dietary treatments influenced quail physiology. Overall, these results indicate that defatted black soldier fly larvae meal is a promising alternative protein source for Japanese quail, providing comparable or superior results compared to conventional feed.