What is this!?!??!

[fleurdejoo]

Ok so I found one of these on the floor, and I killed it.

Then I looked and saw several in with my crickets.

Is this some part of the cricket life cycle?

What?! Is it gonna stay in my kritter keeper? Can it climb plastic walls?

Jeez louise!!

 

[Mime454]

Maybe moths have invaded your house/crickets.

 

[fleurdejoo]

I am so grossed out right now. I just bought these. There's like 5 or so in there that I see so far.

 

[Krissim Klaw]

That is the larva stage of a beetle that likes to eat dead things, like dead crickets. It isn't unusual to see them in with crickets, especially the ones kept at petstores. They are rather harmless to living things and some people like having them to help clean their cages.

 

[angelofdeathzz]

I get them in my store bought crickets once in a while as well. Like krissim said they may use them to help keep their feeder tank cleaner so I think it's a good thing?

Just think of them as a cleaning caterpillar, not so gross maybe?

Edit: Oh yeah, they don't climb slick surfaces like plactic very well(never seen it).

 

[Paradoxica]

I've used them as feeders after I ran out of crickets.

 

[aNisip]

If u breed roaches throw that sucker in with them and he will help clean up in there

 

[fleurdejoo]

You guys! This next is said in my best whiny voice,.

I only like pretty bugs!!!

 

[fleurdejoo]

One has managed to escape the cricket keeper.

 

[patrickfraser]

Dermestid larva. They are keeping my roach bin spic and span.

 

[Orin]

You guys! This next is said in my best whiny voice,.

I only like pretty bugs!!!

The beetles can be somewhat pretty. You probably have a species that's just black as an adult.

 

[lancaster1313]

I like the way the larvae look when they are grey and orange/pink and fuzzy. They are so fast when they scoot around in the container. When I bought crickets I would often ask if I could get extra dermestids.

 

[Mr. Hyde]

I've used them as feeders after I ran out of crickets.

I'm sure you would have said, but I assume no issues arose? I am curious. The idea of a scavenger bug cleaning the cage of the dead seems great, I would almost thing them an ideal gut load.

 

[hibiscusmile]

I get them all the time when I get cricks from ghanns, this time I have a gutload of them, they can fly and I swatted one yesterday in the Bugatorium as I did not want it landing in my hair. I put some in a cage last week and it bored into the sponge stopper, when I pulled it out to feed, I saw it and it freaked me out boring into the stoper, I got the forceps and pulled it out and I think I squished it, freaked me out, no likie things that bore. oh yea, as of this point, they may be cleaners, but I still have to clean the cricket cages.

 

[fleurdejoo]

You know I can not see any more of them in the cricket keeper. So I wonder if they all escaped?

2 got right out of it.

 

[Danny.]

The Chinese lady at my local pet store says they're good luck.

 

[aNisip]

蟋蟀也祝你好运！