# The mites have struck again.



## Mantis_Whisper (Oct 6, 2007)

Alright so the mites got my melanogaster and now they've goten to my hydei. I have no idea how to get rid of them, anyone know how? I have to go get another culture now.

This seriously isn't cool.... mites are now on the list of bugs I dislike. :angry: 

Where do you guys get your cultures? Or at least the flies to start up a culture?


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## bellerophon (Oct 6, 2007)

are you using mite paper under your cultures or do you just have them sitting on a shelf?


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## Mantis_Whisper (Oct 6, 2007)

bellerophon said:


> are you using mite paper under your cultures or do you just have them sitting on a shelf?


I had them all sitting on a shelf.

I've never even heard of mite paper :blink:


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## bellerophon (Oct 6, 2007)

Ok then I think we've found your problem. The thing is there are mites everywhere! in your carpet, on your shelves and even crawling all over you. You cant expect to put an ideal breeding environment on a shelf and not expect them to move on in. Get yourself some mite paper and set your cultures on it. This will kill any mites before they get a chance to enter the cultures. Once they do get in your kinda SOL though. You'll have to start a new culture from mite free sources.

http://www.blackjungle.com/Merchant2/merch...;Category_Code=


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## yen_saw (Oct 6, 2007)

Oh boy I HATE mites! Remember once i almost quit mantis (my wife made me said it) because my lobster roach culture was heavily infested with mites due to the dog food i was using to feed the roach. Needless to say, i lost the chance to raise roaches again. Well, between mantis and roach, it is an obvious choice for me!! So i did finish off all the annoying mites in "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" style.... ha well basically just throw away all the sources i.e. roaches culture and the dog food.


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## hibiscusmile (Oct 6, 2007)

I like fruitfly.net for mine. Until you get the mite paper you can try setting the new cultures in about an 1/4 oil. They will not beable to get out of it. Meaning set the container right in the pan with oil. Sometimes my mind races ahead and my fingers cannot catch up!


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## asdsdf (Oct 6, 2007)

hibiscusmile said:


> I like fruitfly.net for mine. Until you get the mite paper you can try setting the new cultures in about an 1/4 oil. They will not beable to get out of it. Meaning set the container right in the pan with oil. Sometimes my mind races ahead and my fingers cannot catch up!


Would tape work? Really sticky tape, like place it in a circle around the container.


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## Mantis_Whisper (Oct 6, 2007)

bellerophon said:


> Ok then I think we've found your problem. The thing is there are mites everywhere! in your carpet, on your shelves and even crawling all over you. You cant expect to put an ideal breeding environment on a shelf and not expect them to move on in. Get yourself some mite paper and set your cultures on it. This will kill any mites before they get a chance to enter the cultures. Once they do get in your kinda SOL though. You'll have to start a new culture from mite free sources.http://www.blackjungle.com/Merchant2/merch...;Category_Code=


Well just cleaned out all of my culture, throughly. Will the mites bother the mantises? or are they just fine?

Thank you, I'll be sure to get some mite-paper. :Salute:



yen_saw said:


> Oh boy I HATE mites! Remember once i almost quit mantis (my wife made me said it) because my lobster roach culture was heavily infested with mites due to the dog food i was using to feed the roach. Needless to say, i lost the chance to raise roaches again. Well, between mantis and roach, it is an obvious choice for me!! So i did finish off all the annoying mites in "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" style.... ha well basically just throw away all the sources i.e. roaches culture and the dog food.


Awww. I really want to get some hissing roaches but my parents said no... and that thye might kick me out. :blink: 

That would have been funny to see. Mite Massacre!



hibiscusmile said:


> I like fruitfly.net for mine. Until you get the mite paper you can try setting the new cultures in about an 1/4 oil. They will not beable to get out of it. Meaning set the container right in the pan with oil. Sometimes my mind races ahead and my fingers cannot catch up!


I looked for that site and I got some random home improvment site.  

I'll try that with the one I threw together with the suriving flies. Thank you.


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## hibiscusmile (Oct 6, 2007)

http://www.fruitflies.net/ sorry whould of wrote out the link, he has a good bit of info on mites and what to do with them. Do not know if they will bother mantis , Thank God i have not had them! Go there and see what you can do today for them.


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## skinzfan72 (Oct 6, 2007)

I am guessing this may be why my cultures kinda stopped producing? I have 2 cultures that I made Mikhails way. They started out like a house of fire now I barely had enough flies to feed 15 mantids. In 2 days I highly doubt there will be enough again, they just went 3 days since the last feeding. Will they bother crix too?


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## Rick (Oct 6, 2007)

I had the once but I threw out everything and started over. After that I used mite paper but quit using it after a month or two and have never seen antoehr mite.


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## Mantis_Whisper (Oct 6, 2007)

Rick said:


> I had the once but I threw out everything and started over. After that I used mite paper but quit using it after a month or two and have never seen antoehr mite.


I just ordered some new cultures and some mite paper. Thank you for the help.


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## Red (Oct 12, 2007)

AWWW! i'm crazy with the mites, all of my cultures get it.... and can't find benzyl benzoate at spain.......!!! somebody have some efective method to erradicate it?

i do new cultures about 2 weeks and dont have mites, and now again and A LOT!

please help!!

Regards


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## hibiscusmile (Oct 12, 2007)

Go to this site and read this, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diatomaceous_earth, you will at least be able to treat all your surrounding area where you do your cultures with it.


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