preventing mites?

tabbski

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 2, 2007
Messages
11
hey im a little worried bout desturbing my t's nest to remove the shell of the dead cricket to prevent any mites, mainly because i can't see them. is this a major deal? should i search everytime he's finished with the meal? or leave them for a while and then remove the lot of them?
 

Brian S

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
Joined
May 29, 2004
Messages
6,526
It depends if you are keeping a tropical or a desert species. In a dry desert environment it will be too dry for mites to get established however if you have a moist environment then yes you need to remove the uneaten remains. One thing that seems to help me is to keep Isopods in all my moist tanks. Some Isopods will scavenge on uneaten remains thus competing with mites for food.
 

tabbski

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 2, 2007
Messages
11
It depends if you are keeping a tropical or a desert species. In a dry desert environment it will be too dry for mites to get established however if you have a moist environment then yes you need to remove the uneaten remains. One thing that seems to help me is to keep Isopods in all my moist tanks. Some Isopods will scavenge on uneaten remains thus competing with mites for food.
where can i get isopods from?
 

Stan Schultz

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 16, 2004
Messages
1,677
where can i get isopods from?
Your back yard, unless you live too far north this winter. If so, if someone can't mail you a few you'll have to wait till next spring. Look under trash in moist ditches and under stored refuse in the shade behind outbuildings.

These also go by the names "roly-polies," "pill bugs," "sow bugs," and "wood lice."

Here are a few links to visit:

http://insected.arizona.edu/isorear.htm

http://insected.arizona.edu/isoinfo.htm

http://invertebrates.si.edu/isopod/isolinks.htm

Wood gets lice? :-o
 
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