Bit of a problem..

[Leroux2008]

Ok so theres baby crickets EVERYWHERES!!

Its time to change out the paper towel because its dried but I cant because of babies being all over and in it... I tried shaking it off hoping I could get them off but theres just so many! I dont want to kill them though =[

Also... Ive noticed I have a few dead adult cricket in the bin and there is little white eggs on his head and theres crickets all over him too.... Is it possible that one of the other adult females are laying eggs on the dead bodies? I normally clean out the bin once in the mornign and once in the afternoon... and for the last couple days ive been noticing this... when I have one dead there will be eggs on him.... The first one I ever noticed was when I didnt see any babies at all in the container and I had fed off all my adult crickets so I thought maybe I missed this guy cause he was under the little lid I keep the napkins on... and I thought the eggs might have been mildew or something.... Ive come to realize that the little bitty whitish round things are the eggs...

 

[jdog1027]

You should be able to just shake the babies off of the paper towel to re-wet it. I'm kinda' confused on what your saying about the dead adult with eggs on it. Are you sure that they are cricket eggs? You mentioned small whitish and roundish. Cricket eggs look alot like tiny grains of white rice- long cylindrical thingys, not really round. Could you post some pictures of what your seeing?

Cricket eggs

These are my crciket egg containers I place in with the adults. The tops are screened to keep the adults (especially the males)from digging into the eggs and eating them.

 

[Leroux2008]

ewww so maybe its not cricket eggs.... 0.0 i wonder what it is.... I mean I know I have cricket babies in there..... just not sure what ive been seeing on the dead crickets..... Ill try to get a pic and send it.... It might not be clear though because i take my pics at the moment with my cell....

 

[Leroux2008]

ok nevermind...... I just took a Closer look at it..... its not eggs.... its the baby crickets.... the white dots...are moving........ atleast.. im hoping thats baby crickets..... the whitish ones.... Ive seen some that are bigger that actually have the two point spears on their butts and the whiskers and round head.......

 

[Leroux2008]

do they start off white then develop the color?

 

[jdog1027]

Do you have a problem with little gnats in your crickets? I know I do, and they're damn near impossible to stop or prevent. These little white things aren't moving are they? Those gnats like to lay eggs on dead crcikets and damp areas. Sometimes you'll see little maggots on a dead cricket if they aren't removed promptly.

 

[jdog1027]

O.K.- Yes- Crickets are white right at the time they hatch. As their exoskeletons harden, they become the darker greyish-brown color. They also are very lightly colored each time that they molt or shed their skins.

 

[Chamero]

Could be a fungus maybe... possibly what is killing them to begin with.

 

[Leroux2008]

Do you have a problem with little gnats in your crickets? I know I do, and they're damn near impossible to stop or prevent. These little white things aren't moving are they? Those gnats like to lay eggs on dead crcikets and damp areas. Sometimes you'll see little maggots on a dead cricket if they aren't removed promptly.

Ahhhh I have a problem with those guys also as of recently..... the white dots I am seeing on the dead crickets are probably the nats.... I have noticed the little cylinder looking eggs the crickets lay and I have noticed cricket babies in there all over the place..... guess it looks like im breeding nats and crickets -_- I have yet to see maggots though..... mainly just full grown flying nats and white circular dots that move......

 

[Leroux2008]

@ Chamero... As of hte earlier post I looked closer and noticed that the white dots actually move.....

 

[Leroux2008]

If I can remember to do this as soon as I get off of work I am going to move the adult crickets into a seperate bin and hopefully die down the nat problem... like Ive said before there was like a guy or two that I noticed I missed that died but he was under the lid and I have soil in that container in there with them... so what probably happened is I started a colony for nats -_-.... for the time being do u think its okay to have the baby crickets in there with the nats until the nats die away?

 

[jdog1027]

Good question. Obviously, the ultimate goal would be to eliminate the gnats and only culture crickets. I don't know if there is a competition for any resources between the crickets and gnats. I've often feared that the gnats laying their eggs in the crickets egg bins would create a problem, because I'm not really sure of what the maggots that hatch feed on. I fear they could possibly feed on the cricket eggs, diminishing the number of crickets that hatch as a result. The only defense that has even come close to working for me, is to cover the screen on my cricket enclosures with window sheer material. In case your not familiar with window sheer, it is the silk like curtain that hang behing curtains. It is of a very tight weave and it prevents the gnats from being able to crawl through the window screen. The only draw back I've considered when using window sheer is it may limit the quality of ventilation for the crickets cages. I just compensated by making multiple large ventilation holes cut out of the plastic tubs I use for my crickets. I know that this is almost more trouble than it's worth. I have a lot of baby chameleons to feed, and if I were to order as many tiny crickets I would need per week, I'd end up spending $120 a month on crickets alone after shipping costs. I choose to be self sufficient rather than to be broke!!! If your interested, I could send you some more pictures and details about my cricket breeding set up through your PM.

 

[Leroux2008]

hey yeah thatd be great Id love to see some pictures =D I enjoy seeing how other people operate with their setups on anything =D Thta is what I want to do get rid of the nats.... mearly because it grosses me out XD This was my first successful hatching of my baby crickets and I dont want the bunch to die =[

 

[DavidBuchan]

When you're talking about gnats, are you sure. From the info so far it sounds like mites to me. Can we see a photo? I know I get mites on occasion. Have to be dealt with 'cos they can spread like wildfire.

 

[DavidBuchan]

If its mites then remove all rotting food, and cricket corpses. make sure it's dry and away from anything they can spread into. You can save the baby crickets if you feed them only dry flakes

 

[jdog1027]

When you're talking about gnats, are you sure. From the info so far it sounds like mites to me. Can we see a photo? I know I get mites on occasion. Have to be dealt with 'cos they can spread like wildfire.

Good point- I considered that when Leroux mentioned it earlier. I have never had any mites on my crickets yet, but I'm sure that it is a possibility. I'd like to see some good pictures of them as well. The gnats are not white in color like she mentioned. The gnats are a dark color.

 

[Leroux2008]

I havnt noticed the white dots on the alive ones but Ive noticed white dots on the dead ones.... ive only noticed the gnats when they have wings.... I tried taking a picture but its really hard to see anything .... I tried using the flash but then u just see a big white light...... i will keep trying though and see if I can get a decent picture??

 

[Leroux2008]

ok well I tried taking a picture in a better lited room its still hard becuase the closer I get to it the blurry it gets with my phone... I have to go to work now but I will try once more once I get back and if I cant get any clearer shots ill just post up what I was able to take and see if maybe some good eyes can pick out what it might be

 

[DavidBuchan]

I havnt noticed the white dots on the alive ones but Ive noticed white dots on the dead ones.... ive only noticed the gnats when they have wings.... I tried taking a picture but its really hard to see anything .... I tried using the flash but then u just see a big white light...... i will keep trying though and see if I can get a decent picture??

You could have both? If that's the case maybe better to scrap them. I only get mites in my mealworm tubs, and can save them easily by letting them dry out in quarantine. You really must make sure there's no way this infestation can get to the cham cage. Wash hands scrupulously when dealing with it.

 

[Leroux2008]

oooo trust me I wash my hands always with dealing with the nasties =[ It scares me seeing the little white bugs because I dont want them on me.... So I dug through my storage and found my camera..... It works alot better than my phone does... I jkust went ahead a took a short video of it..... tell me what u think... I really hope its not mites but if it is.... I will do what I can to get rid of them...

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v328/rainbow_torch/?action=view&current=Camera101.mp4