# Bad Bug Infestation



## CourtneyG (Jul 4, 2013)

So I have a 2 type bug infestation. Fruit Flies and Gnats(black bugs close to the size of the fruit flies). I have 2 problems with both bugs. The fruit flies are not attracted to the Appel cider vinegar I have put out for them, the adult gnats are though and have died in it, but not as much as I would like. The second problem is I have a crab and his coconut coir stays moist all the time and he has freeze dried shrimp in for him to eat. The gnats have been breeding in his tank and the tortoise tank, when I lift the food bowl of the torts up a whole bunch of little tiny bugs(presumable the baby gnats) go fleeing and there are a lot of them in the coconut coir of the tortoise table near the water bowl. What can I do to get rid of all these bugs!!!! They are being a huge annoyance upstairs.


The gnats looks like they are breeding in the tort table and not the crab tank. I have not found tiny insects in the crabs tank, just the tort table.


The Lillie bugs also don't fly, they just run away.


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## wellington (Jul 4, 2013)

What I have found to take care of the gnats, is to bake my coconut coir before using. The little crawling things, I always get back after the baking but they never bothered us or the torts. Others will have more ideas.


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## saberfire06 (Jul 4, 2013)

You are not alone! 

I have also had this exact same problem! At first it didn't bother me, it was only a few of them and they didn't seem to bother Dante. After about a week though and a failed attempt at apple cider vinegar mix, a alcohol, mix and when I started to get desperate a mango kool aid concoction they started to appear in large numbers. 

Not wanting to use any type of chemical spray around Dante I gave in today and cleaned out the whole tank replacing all the substrate and washing everything down. 

I am also not naive in thinking that this has solved my problem for good because I know they will return but I hope to find a way to catch them before they get out of control like this time. 

Like you I also have hermit crabs and have had issue with them breeding in my crab tank but never as many as I saw in my torts tank.


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## jaizei (Jul 4, 2013)

For inside the enclosure, woodlice are said to help keep other bug populations down.

For those flying around, have you tried fly paper?


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## saberfire06 (Jul 4, 2013)

jaizei said:


> For inside the enclosure, woodlice are said to help keep other bug populations down.
> 
> For those flying around, have you tried fly paper?



What attracts them to the fly paper because they sure were not attracted to any of the other fruity smelling ideas I have tried lol


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## Turtulas-Len (Jul 4, 2013)

I use the vinegar and dish washing liquid mix, I also bait them away from the enclosures with a small pieces of fruit and change it everyday to get rid of the eggs that they lay on the fruit. I believe it helps to control their infestation in the enclosures by giving them another place to lay eggs.


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## saberfire06 (Jul 4, 2013)

Len said:


> I use the vinegar and dish washing liquid mix, I also bait them away from the enclosures with a small pieces of fruit and change it everyday to get rid of the eggs that they lay on the fruit. I believe it helps to control their infestation in the enclosures by giving them another place to lay eggs.



I think I might give the fruit idea a try. It seems to work unintentionally in my hermit crab tank because since I change out the food everyday,, the eggs they might be laying in it don't have a chance to hatch.


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## pfara (Jul 4, 2013)

Do a google search for "yellow sticky traps." The 3"x5" yellow index card looking things are what I use. I originally bought some from parkseed but shipping was as much as the stickies, themselves. However, the parkseed traps came with a few wire things that you can use to prop the traps up. Amazon has refills that cost less. Apparently the color yellow really attracts them. So far my gnat problem has lessened by a boatload. I figure, if you pair the sticky traps with pillbugs, you might virtually never have them. Hope this helps.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 4, 2013)

I am not looking for a way to completely get rid of them, I doubt that will happen, but enough for them to no longer be a annoyance to me. Not one of the bugs is bothering the animals, just the human.


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## jjsull33 (Jul 4, 2013)

Add pill bugs or sow bugs to the enclosure, they eat the mite and gnat eggs, as well as the left overs from the torts. Plus they have gills not lungs so they hide under things to stay damp and dark and you rarely see them.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 4, 2013)

jjsull33 said:


> Add pill bugs or sow bugs to the enclosure, they eat the mite and gnat eggs, as well as the left overs from the torts. Plus they have gills not lungs so they hide under things to stay damp and dark and you rarely see them.



Will they cause any problems if they got out or such?


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## pfara (Jul 4, 2013)

CourtneyG said:


> jjsull33 said:
> 
> 
> > Add pill bugs or sow bugs to the enclosure, they eat the mite and gnat eggs, as well as the left overs from the torts. Plus they have gills not lungs so they hide under things to stay damp and dark and you rarely see them.
> ...



Out of the enclosure or topside of the substrate? Since they have gills, they'll most likely die without moisture.


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## jjsull33 (Jul 4, 2013)

No, they are those small gray bugs that roll up into a ball when you poke them. They just eat decaying plant matter, animal feces, and bug eggs. I have used them before and never had an escapee. Since they are isopods (related to crabs and the like) they have gills, and use their feelers/legs to pull little droplets of water from the dirt and breath it, since your enclosure is going to have damp areas and debris/eggs for them to eat they won't leave for the house or bother the animals.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 4, 2013)

jjsull33 said:


> No, they are those small gray bugs that roll up into a ball when you poke them. They just eat decaying plant matter, animal feces, and bug eggs. I have used them before and never had an escapee. Since they are isopods (related to crabs and the like) they have gills, and use their feelers/legs to pull little droplets of water from the dirt and breath it, since your enclosure is going to have damp areas and debris/eggs for them to eat they won't leave for the house or bother the animals.



Ohh you mean Roly Polys. I do not keep the coconut coir all that moist in the tank though. But I am going to renovate the tank soon and mix some soil with the coconut coir and plant some grass seeds and Elephant food in there, I might be able to put them in the tank then with the soil mix retaining water with me having to water the grass.


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## pfara (Jul 4, 2013)

Personally, I don't have pillbugs in my enclosure. The yellow sticky traps seem to work pretty well on their own for gnat control.


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## jjsull33 (Jul 4, 2013)

I use 50/50 coco and top soil and that seems to work, but it should work fine with just coco as well. Just make sure you mist daily so there is moisture in the soil, it doesn't have to be soaked or anything, just moist. Just like when you flip a log to find them in the yard or woods, that level of moisture is what they will thrive in, and they will hide under the water dish, food slates, hides, etc.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 4, 2013)

Should I bake the soil in case of insects. It is still in its bags in my garage.


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## jjsull33 (Jul 4, 2013)

Solving bugs with bugs is something I usually do, I also try to keep a bioactive substrate with worms, pill bugs, growing plants and a false bottom so it doesn't have sitting water, works fairly well so far. I have had trouble with other beetles that I tried taking over, but pill bugs don't seem to. Plus its something else to watch from time to time.


I never do, but if you do it will kill anything that may be in there.


I actually take dirt right from my yard.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 4, 2013)

Our lawn is treated and the stuff has probably run off into the soil near by. But I have a few bags of the stuff that I am going to put inside my outdoor pen that I built. do you oder the bugs or just catch them in the woods?


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## jjsull33 (Jul 4, 2013)

I have done both, www.bugsincyberspace.com have different clean up crews you can buy or just go flip some stones and catch them. I believe Carolina pet supply is where I got mine online.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 4, 2013)

Well I will try to catch some in the woods first, there should be a ton of them out, we have had non stop rain for 4 days now, and it should continue through the week. If I am non successful then I will order them online.


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## jjsull33 (Jul 4, 2013)

Try and catch a few different kinds, you will notice some have harder looking shells and are bigger, some are tiny and really light and don't really roll up all the time. they prefer slightly different types of debris so it will keep it cleaner, also catch a bunch, most cleaning crews sold online are 50count, I think I started with 100+ and let them even out and start cleaning/breeding. My enclosure is 24 square feet.


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## zman7590 (Jul 4, 2013)

redo your setup to get rid of em!


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## CourtneyG (Jul 5, 2013)

At work today I got about 20 something Roly Polys and planted my grass seeds in the tank. Hopefully I will see less of the bugs. Also will the Roly Polys eat the grass seeds?


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## jjsull33 (Jul 5, 2013)

I don't think so, they choose the decaying plant matter over the new growth, that being said I am not 100% sure that they won't but I never had a problem with them eating seeds so I assume they won't.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 5, 2013)

jjsull33 said:


> I don't think so, they choose the decaying plant matter over the new growth, that being said I am not 100% sure that they won't but I never had a problem with them eating seeds so I assume they won't.



Well I planted a lot of seeds and have a ton left over, lets just hope the seeds grow an the Roly Polys breed.


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## jjsull33 (Jul 5, 2013)

As long as you keep it moist they should be fine, if the tort isn't living in there yet, you may want to put a piece of fruit or green on a rock so they have something to eat before the tort moves in and starts leaving debris.


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## LolaMyLove (Jul 5, 2013)

The bugs were driving me nuts. So I finally broke down and found a about 6 pill bugs in the yard and tossed them in. With a few days I noticed a big difference. After two weeks I haven't seen a single bug other then the occasional pill bug crawling by to say hi.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 5, 2013)

My Pancake live in there, why the infestation was so bad with them leaving leaves in the substrate.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 7, 2013)

Finally found the fruit fly larvae breeding ground, and it is in my crab tank. Will my crab eat my Roly Polys and will the Polys eat the fruit fly larvae?


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## jjsull33 (Jul 7, 2013)

They will eat the fruit fly, however I have no idea about the crab eating them.


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## CourtneyG (Jul 7, 2013)

Guess I will have to throw a ton into his tank and hope some survive.


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