Need a new hf system! Help please

[agent A]

I am really tired of houseflies

They aggravate me, but I have 13 L4 wahlbergii (1 is still L3 and 1 molted to L4, stopped eating, and keeled over, some L4 r ready to molt to L5), abt 10 L2 californica, and 3 little multispina who need hf and soon my oxys, limbata, and future lineola will need hf to feast upon

My first system was to keep hf in a net cage but removing them proved a pain and they r next to impossible to catch after they escaped and it's a waste of space

Then I put them in an 80oz deli cup with a hole in the side but it takes me almost 3 hours to get enough flies out to feed stuff and they die real fast in it and honey gets everywhere inside and out of the hf cage and there is condensation all over the walls and stuff of the cup

Anyone have a good, easy hf keeping system where they r easy to feed, don't die off in huge numbers, and easy to remove to use as food? Thanx

 

[CoolMantid]

Have 2 cups. One filled with the hf pupae the other with just a water bottle cap with honey. These will be connected with a tube, so the flies after eclosion can transfer to the second cage. Once you have one filled with live, buzzing hfs you diconnect it from the tube and quickly cover up the hole with a foam stopper. Dont forget to put a stopper on the end of the tube too.

Put the one with the flies in the fridge until they sleep. Then quickly drop them into the cage you want to feed them too and presto! you are done. They will perk up and start buzzing around.

Does this make sense? i could take pics or soemthing if you are confused

 

[aNisip]

To collect flies, I use a net (one that you can get at a dollar store or something) and a vaccum. Turn on vaccum and use the hose extension and let the net go into to the tube. Then put this whole thing into the net cube and suck up all the flies you need and close off the hole into the net and turn off the vaccum. Alas! All the flies are in the net (not sucked into the vaccum, or flying around the rrom)! Hope this helps, and sorry that im late in repyling to this post.

 

[maybon]

you can just put the pupae into the enclosures and they will hatch over time, keep the rest in the fridge and remove as needed. Don't know how well this would work but it could be worth a try.

 

[hibiscusmile]

yea, use a bottle cap for the pupae, use forceps to put it in hole and replace with another one in day or so..