| Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! | |
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Roblicious Babycurus
Number of posts : 321 Age : 38 Registration date : 2011-02-08
| Subject: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! 4/5/2011, 6:48 pm | |
| I ask this here because I used to house my scorpions in here as a temporary home when I was working on their enclosure, they would be in there for a days to weeks at a time, but not I have 2 adult hissers and a handful of babies. I was filling the little milk cap full of water and I noticed in the corner where the cap is palced were a bunch of small white bugs moving around on the walls in the substrate and then I noticed all the babies have migrated over there dono if its cause its more humid or whatever. Here is the best pic I can get They are SMALL/TINY and white but they move around quickly The substrate is coco fiber mixed with eco earth bark chips I discovered this last night and there was a swarm of them in 1 area and in the water dish as there was a piece of wood in there, this morning I checked and they have dispersed, maybe the roaches ate them? I still see a few but not as many as before. Are they substrate mites or bad parasitic mites? My last scorpion was the ASF that was housed in there and she looked mite free last time I checked her. | |
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Envyizm Breeder
Number of posts : 238 Age : 38 Location : Columbus Ohio Registration date : 2010-05-24
| Subject: Re: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! 4/5/2011, 10:49 pm | |
| From what i can make out in the pic they appear to be Phorid fly larvae, most likely from a rotted ootheca or dead roach. If they move like worms, I would change the substrate immediately unless you want a billion flies bugging the crap out of you. I would also keep the hissers on dry substrate. | |
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Mr. Mordax Administrator
Number of posts : 7743 Age : 38 Location : PNW Registration date : 2008-02-06
| Subject: Re: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! 4/6/2011, 12:17 pm | |
| I doubt that they're maggots (fly larvae) -- they look to me like springtails, especially if they move around as quickly as you say. Can you get a good macro picture? Even holding a magnifying glass above them while you take the picture will help. | |
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Roblicious Babycurus
Number of posts : 321 Age : 38 Registration date : 2011-02-08
| Subject: Re: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! 4/6/2011, 3:37 pm | |
| That dont move around like worms, I can see tiny tiny feet on them, I have already changed the substrate, but I will be changing it again cause I guess crushed walnut is bad for them.
I am buying a bag of loose coco fiber when I get off of work today, so I will be using that.
As weird as this sounds, im afraid to pick them up, I dont even like grabbing crickets, I use tongs as much as possible, so yeah I dont handle my scorpions either, something about all of their exo skeleton creeps me out, that and scorpions can sting/grab me lol. | |
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Mr. Mordax Administrator
Number of posts : 7743 Age : 38 Location : PNW Registration date : 2008-02-06
| Subject: Re: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! 4/7/2011, 3:27 pm | |
| Yeah, sounds like springtails. Absolutely harmless, and some consider them to be beneficial (they're detrivores, so they help to clean up). Some places even sell them (usually for dart frog prey). | |
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Roblicious Babycurus
Number of posts : 321 Age : 38 Registration date : 2011-02-08
| Subject: Re: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! 4/7/2011, 3:40 pm | |
| I am not sure how I even 'spawned' these spring tails? If they are beneficial should I try to breed them? How would I get them to come back? I might as well try lol
Spring tails dont jump do they even though their name hints towards it? | |
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Mr. Mordax Administrator
Number of posts : 7743 Age : 38 Location : PNW Registration date : 2008-02-06
| Subject: Re: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! 4/10/2011, 9:13 pm | |
| They tend to jump. If yours don't, it's possible they're something else.
They're one of those organisms that just sort of show up if the conditions are right. I don't know if their eggs are already present in the substrate, or if they came in on tank decor, or what. | |
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| Subject: Re: Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! | |
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| Weird looking 'termites' in my Hissing Roach enclosure?! | |
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