Cricket colony

[Quake]

The pics are bugless since I just got the crix, but here is their new home.

Glass tank with steel mesh slide on lid, about 2 inches of potting soil (cooked to kill mites) with the additions of a little pvc cave, some rocks, and plenty of lettuce and tomato plant seedlings for food. The rocks I will place other foods for gut loading on as well.

more pics soon

 

[Colorcham427]

The pics are bugless since I just got the crix, but here is their new home.

Glass tank with steel mesh slide on lid, about 2 inches of potting soil (cooked to kill mites) with the additions of a little pvc cave, some rocks, and plenty of lettuce and tomato plant seedlings for food. The rocks I will place other foods for gut loading on as well.

more pics soon

Are you keeping these as your pets??

 

[Quake]

Are you keeping these as your pets??

No, just feeders. Previously I have kept cricket, fly and fruit fly cultures for mantids ad toads and the crickets gave me the most trouble so I am trying a more natural approach for their enclosure.

 

[Colorcham427]

No, just feeders. Previously I have kept cricket, fly and fruit fly cultures for mantids ad toads and the crickets gave me the most trouble so I am trying a more natural approach for their enclosure.

prepare for a lot more cleaning!

If I were you I would go by the dry, NO substrate approach. I've raised crickets and can give you plenty of useful tips.

Crickets normally die in large numbers either by dehydration, lack of something in their diet, or simply because the source you bought them from don't provide them a decent place to thrive.

Keeping them clean is extremely important.

What are you going to do when that soil begins to stick horribly from the cricket frass? Cricket poop smells worse than lots of things lol.

 

[Rick]

prepare for a lot more cleaning!

If I were you I would go by the dry, NO substrate approach. I've raised crickets and can give you plenty of useful tips.

Crickets normally die in large numbers either by dehydration, lack of something in their diet, or simply because the source you bought them from don't provide them a decent place to thrive.

Keeping them clean is extremely important.

What are you going to do when that soil begins to stick horribly from the cricket frass? Cricket poop smells worse than lots of things lol.

Kinda what I was thinking. Also they may devour the plants in no time. I prefer an enclosure with a substrate of dry oatmeal.

 

[Quake]

I have another enclosure ready in case of any difficulties. I put the cardboard egg crates they came with in the tank filling it up basically and added carrots and oatmeal on top. Purely experimental, flies will be ordered when trouble brews.

 

[Colorcham427]

I have another enclosure ready in case of any difficulties. I put the cardboard egg crates they came with in the tank filling it up basically and added carrots and oatmeal on top. Purely experimental, flies will be ordered when trouble brews.

Plastic bin with screen covered holes on the sides of it is a better idea.

Just curious about your previous experiences and why you're changing it so drastically. Your doing everything to make it harder for yourself, and you're making it easier for bacteria to produce and you're making it much easier for the home of the crickets to get damp and stink....

 

[Quake]

I previously tried oatmeal and mesa substrates and even the plastic bin with separate containers for food and soil but I couldn't maintain it enough without making a mess of things and the crickets kept dying off for multiple reasons. I put the egg crates and cardboard they came with in the enclosure and so far everything has gone perfectly. No dead crickets being eaten, mold and smell haven't been a problem, and food is still plentiful. I have a green thumb so I wasn't worried about vanishing plants or moldy soil and so far that has been fine. I put a cup of ground dog food in there as well and a small sponge in case the plants aren't enough. I have literally seen zero dead crix so far. A more natural approach is just my style when it comes to everything.

 

[Rick]

I previously tried oatmeal and mesa substrates and even the plastic bin with separate containers for food and soil but I couldn't maintain it enough without making a mess of things and the crickets kept dying off for multiple reasons. I put the egg crates and cardboard they came with in the enclosure and so far everything has gone perfectly. No dead crickets being eaten, mold and smell haven't been a problem, and food is still plentiful. I have a green thumb so I wasn't worried about vanishing plants or moldy soil and so far that has been fine. I put a cup of ground dog food in there as well and a small sponge in case the plants aren't enough. I have literally seen zero dead crix so far. A more natural approach is just my style when it comes to everything.

I can't imagine what you did when youhad the enclosure with the oatmeal that caused your issues. All I ever do is have a large rubbermaid with a couple inches of dry oatmeal and egg crates. A shallow dish with a moist sponge for water. Use a dirt filled bowl for egg laying. Use your egg crates and make ramps into the bowl. Once the bowl is full of eggs, remove it and add another. Very simple and very easy to clean.

 

[Mars1962]

All I ever do is have a large rubbermaid with a couple inches of dry oatmeal and egg crates. A shallow dish with a moist sponge for water. Use a dirt filled bowl for egg laying. Use your egg crates and make ramps into the bowl. Once the bowl is full of eggs, remove it and add another. Very simple and very easy to clean.

Bingo! Just the basic, start-up info I needed : ). And boy am I glad i found the tip about Cheerios -- they should put that in their commercials!

Next task: figure out how to get Rock (3-month old Chinese mantis) off my interior brick wall and into his cage for the night. Without our weekly, "Soooo, you think after a day of freedom you can get me back into a jail cell, huh??? Show me what you got!! Hiiiiiiyyyyyyaah!!!"

I'd let him stay out but he's so ghetto -- he'd fly down to the floor and challenge one of my cats to a staring match: "WHAT!!!"

Official Cricket Question: I've been getting mine at Petsmart and yesterday tried PetCo. THESE ones have all lived (beaten the previous batches by a landslide) and they chirp all freaking night AND DAY. I never heard any of the previous batches chirp. What's up with THAT?

 

[mantidsaresweet]

@Rick

How do you know when the dirt is full of eggs and needs to be replaced? Also what do you do with all the eggs?

 

[Rick]

@Rick

How do you know when the dirt is full of eggs and needs to be replaced? Also what do you do with all the eggs?

If you have a lot of females you will see the eggs. If you have given them enough time and don't see any all you have to do is scrape some of the dirt away and look. I place the bowl into another container and put it under a low wattage heat lamp for about a week. Usually that was all it took for them to hatch.