Cricket egg laying prevention ?

Jetzie

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 1, 2005
Messages
157
Hi guys, just checking out my tanks today just to find out that my rainforest terrerium setup for my P.regalis has tons.. and i mean TONS of pinhead running about on the surfece of the soil. well they are still so small so none actuallyu climbed up the tank and the wood. but kindda looks creepy though now it really looks like a peice of work from the rainforest!

well qn is. is it ok if i leave the pinheads inside? will it cause probs for my adult regalis ? 1 of my friend told me that if i leave it out to dry for a while, the pinheads will die off.

does anyone has this prblem too? with crickets that are left in the tank uneaten running about laying eggs into the soil ?
what i do now when i feed is to snip off the egg laying tube of the cricket and the wings (to stop them from making SO MUCH NOISE) but will the tube still be functionable if it's already snipeD?

Valuable advice is appriciated here.. thanks ! :worship:
 

nightbreed

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Aug 22, 2004
Messages
584
I had this problem in my L.parahybana's tank what I did was sunk a water bowl in the substrate so the lip of the bowl was the same level as the substrate and all the crickets obligingly drowned themselves.
From what I hear if you snip their ovipositors they can still lay eggs.
 

chique

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Sep 17, 2004
Messages
159
I had this problem about two weeks ago in my B.Smithis tank, I took the water dish out, squished any baby crix I could and let the rest drop naturally, they don't harm a T from what I've been advised. A method to prevent eggs hatching which someone on AB told me about is to put a small container of vermiculite (nice and damp) in the tank when female crix are in there because they are more likely to use this as a laying bed than dryer dirtier areas, this will mean you can just chuck out the eggs as they are laid. I've read on another post that crix can still lay eggs if you destroy/remove the ovipositors but I can't elaborate on that. All in all no big problem, be nice if you got a sling you can feed the pin heads to I'm all up for recycling {D
 

Jetzie

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 1, 2005
Messages
157
i tot of using the pinheads for my lings, but den again. the pinheads are in my adult regalis's aboreal setup. and u noe how lightning fast they are.. with her vemon and temperment.. i wont wish to stick my hands near or in the tank and start fiddling with her furniture.. hehe..

been about 1 -2 days .. the amount of pinheads lessen, shud have died off .. some are spotted stuck in the webbings of the regalis.
 

BugToxin

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 18, 2004
Messages
269
I don't know how much science is involved in this, but I keep a little dish full of damp peat moss in with my adult crickets (seperate container from the T). Before I started doing this, it seemd that the female crickets that weren't eaten immediately would start laying eggs in my T enclosures as fast as they could get their butts into the ground. By keeping a damp dish of peat for the purpose of egg laying in with my crickets they seem to get it out of their system before they become food for the T's. Plus, once they hatch in the little egg station I get a good supply of pins outside of my T enclosure that will either get eaten by the big crickets or grow up into small crickets that can be fed to my slings.

I am attaching a pic.. There aren't any big cricets in here now, but there are tons of little pins down in the vermiculite.
 

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Dark Raptor

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Oct 18, 2004
Messages
1,062
You can always dry them up. Young crickets are very sensitive to low humidity. Of course without food they will also die very quickly.
This is my solution for that problem. It always works.
 

Jetzie

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 1, 2005
Messages
157
hmm guess will stick to the drying method for now. right now there's 2 adults lurking around the tank, but i cant get them out. both have thier tube cut. hope they dont go around laying eggs again, or better still hope my regalis finds them. ;)
 

Lycanthrope

Arachnolord
Old Timer
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Oct 10, 2002
Messages
622
I have taken to feeding only male and prewing crickets to any inverts I keep even semi- moist. Adult females I feed to the inverts living in the very driest enclosures, OBT's, Hadrurus scorps, etc. Havent had a pinhead infestation since I started doing this.
 

bonesmama

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Sep 28, 2004
Messages
1,017
I had a pinhead breakout recently in my Rose Hair's enclosure, which I keep bone dry. They seemed to stress her- she started climbing the walls, and sure enough when I looked closely there they were emerging from the substrate-- but I noticed that if I put a female cric in that isn't immediately gobbled up, she starts laying eggs--I thought maybe this was natures way of perpetuating the species in the face of danger, but it's probably just that there was no suitable place for her to lay in the Cricket Keeper. I'm gonna try keeping moist peat in the crix enclosure from now on - it sounds like a really great idea. :clap:
 

mimic58

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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Dec 19, 2004
Messages
515
I have a great method for mites and any other pest in the substrate its called a "Microwave"
 

bonesmama

Arachnoprince
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Sep 28, 2004
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1,017
Just remember to remove your T before utilising the aforementioned appliance!!
 

Jetzie

Arachnoknight
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Jan 1, 2005
Messages
157
haha definately, or my dinner will have to include simmered regalis smothered with crickets: COUNTRY STYLE. LOL
 

StOrM^

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 15, 2005
Messages
50
Jetzie said:
haha definately, or my dinner will have to include simmered regalis smothered with crickets: COUNTRY STYLE. LOL
jusy use your hand and take out!! haha.. i know some one who got bitten by ur bad girl n still alive n kicking.. haha.. except of the 2 painful hours he has to go through and the $120 he spend to get the shot that cure him!! haha let me know how painful it is .. ok?? btw this is my last week of my National Slavery b4 i start clearing.!!
 

port513

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 22, 2004
Messages
135
Cut of their egglaying tube, that way they can't do anything except be food for you T.
 
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