| Mites? | |
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kadama Hadogenes
Number of posts : 73 Age : 35 Location : Nanaimo, B.C., Canada Registration date : 2010-03-11
| Subject: Mites? 1/2/2011, 3:02 pm | |
| Howdy, I've had my two emperor's for almost a year now, I recently redid their tank. It was terribly dry. This is the first time I've changed anything within the tank.. It's been about a week or two and this morning I found their water dish to be full of little white(roundish)bugs.. I have a feeling it is mites. I have had baby crickets before and they did not look like this.. How do I remove them with the least possible stress.. I also live in Canada, the heating in my house isn't the best.. They have a heat lamp. So taking them out and putting them in another holding tank will be a bit hard, as I only have the one tank they share together.. I've read what I could on here about it, I have heard there is two different types of mites.. How can I tell the difference? When I redid the tank and got to look at my emperor's they were fine, there was no little white(roundish)bugs on them or in their tank.. | |
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Mr. Mordax Administrator
Number of posts : 7743 Age : 38 Location : PNW Registration date : 2008-02-06
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/2/2011, 3:31 pm | |
| If they're white and roundish, and in the water dish, it sounds more like springtails than mites to me. Springtails are harmless detritivores. | |
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kadama Hadogenes
Number of posts : 73 Age : 35 Location : Nanaimo, B.C., Canada Registration date : 2010-03-11
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/2/2011, 3:36 pm | |
| Will they stress out my emp's at all? The male wasn't looking all that great when I redid everything, I rarely see him. Maybe once a month he moves to where I can see both the female and male together. Most of the time they are in the back of the hide together, kinda stacked on top of each other. I found a new tank the other day, I plan on moving the female into her own space in the next few days.. I just need to clean it. It was out on the street, has some fish gravel in it.. Which leads to another question, can I just boil water and use it to clean the new tank and that will be fine? Or can I use just really hot tap water? | |
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Mr. Mordax Administrator
Number of posts : 7743 Age : 38 Location : PNW Registration date : 2008-02-06
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/2/2011, 7:05 pm | |
| That's normal for them to hang out in the hide all the time. A few springtails won't stress them. | |
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kadama Hadogenes
Number of posts : 73 Age : 35 Location : Nanaimo, B.C., Canada Registration date : 2010-03-11
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/3/2011, 2:04 am | |
| Just an update.. I am really worried now.. They BOTH came out tonight, I rarely see the male.. He hasn't come out in months.. They were sitting there, the female half way across the tank.. kicking every once and a while.. first time I've observed that.. I looked very closely and I can't see anything on them.. I don't know, I have really bad eye site though.. even with my glasses on I am not sure.. I know though that I see nothing moving. I looked at their joints, as I have read that is where mites are likely to hook onto them.. | |
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Mr. Mordax Administrator
Number of posts : 7743 Age : 38 Location : PNW Registration date : 2008-02-06
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/3/2011, 2:20 am | |
| Step one: take a deep breath. Release.
Ok.
If you can't see anything on them, then you don't need to worry. Especially considering that you found them in the water dish, I'm thinking you've got springtails.
http://images.google.com/images?q=springtails&biw=1280&bih=636 | |
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kadama Hadogenes
Number of posts : 73 Age : 35 Location : Nanaimo, B.C., Canada Registration date : 2010-03-11
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/3/2011, 2:41 am | |
| Okay, they sorta look alike.. The kicking isn't a sign of stress is it?
Edit: I am going to try and take pictures in the next day or two, when I get a camera.. If I can't do something before then. | |
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H. laoticus Parabuthus
Number of posts : 1401 Age : 35 Location : Southern California Registration date : 2009-03-26
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/3/2011, 6:27 am | |
| I'd say they're springtails too and my scorps come out at night at odd intervals all the time. What do you mean by kicking? I'll wait for the pics to see if there is even a mite problem. | |
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kadama Hadogenes
Number of posts : 73 Age : 35 Location : Nanaimo, B.C., Canada Registration date : 2010-03-11
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/3/2011, 11:25 am | |
| They were both standing, the male just outside of their hide, the female on the other end of the tank. I noticed the male doing it first, because I never see him.. He was kicking the second leg from the front and turning up soil.. I think from the little things in the soil.. I looked at the female and she was doing the same. The female was also sorta skittering from one end of the tank to the other, like she was irritaited..
Edit: I also forgot to add, I dried out the tank considerably last night. I still see some wandering around.. I do see a few white dots wandering around inside the hide , which isn't as dry. They are both back inside and settled down, it seems. | |
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kadama Hadogenes
Number of posts : 73 Age : 35 Location : Nanaimo, B.C., Canada Registration date : 2010-03-11
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/3/2011, 11:53 am | |
| And aren't springtails supposed to jump? | |
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Mr. Mordax Administrator
Number of posts : 7743 Age : 38 Location : PNW Registration date : 2008-02-06
| Subject: Re: Mites? 1/3/2011, 10:53 pm | |
| Sometimes they jump, yes. There's also a few thousands species of mites, some of which may be pale in color and a great deal of which aren't harmful.
Don't dry out the tank. That's more risky for the scorpions than whatever has populated your tank is.
The "kicking" behavior sounds almost like trying to relocate substrate to burrow. I've seen some burrowing species dig like dogs with the front pair of legs. | |
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