Carrion Flies

H

herphobbyist

Ootheca
I don't know if this is the correct forum so I apoligize if it is not. Since I started working with Dubias and Hissers I notice I have a ton of Carrion Flies in my room. My question is simple, hopefully. How do I get rid of them? thanks

 
I imagine you're talking about phorid flies which are about the size of fruit flies but hop and run more than fly. The larvae feed on dead insects (but can infest fruit fly medium and other food sources) so the way to keep them under control is to remove and dispose of dead bodies as quickly as possible.

 
Orin,

I appreciate your response. I really don't have any dead carcasses that I have seen. I will keep an eye out for them, thanks

Orin McMonigle said:
I imagine you're talking about phorid flies which are about the size of fruit flies but hop and run more than fly. The larvae feed on dead insects (but can infest fruit fly medium and other food sources) so the way to keep them under control is to remove and dispose of dead bodies as quickly as possible.
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Sorry to bring this rather old thread back to life, but the subject is also very relevant here.

I have cleaned out all terrariums, used fine net on a frame of wood and set up two UV-lights, but still the phorid flies keeps coming back. I have heard they are difficult to get rid of. I got them in with a culture of A. tesselata, that was kept very, very humid.

Can lowering the general humid level help?

They can smell a dead roach through a platic box. If the corpse is within a closed container, the phorid flies will still assemble outside the box in dozens. I want to make a trap. Any good models or designs, that can be recommended?

The enthusiasm for invertebrates does not extend to phorid flies! My wife gave a good one, though: "Why do you keep them (phorid flies) in separate tanks? Isn't it better with one tank for them alone?"

She knew - just wanted to get me.... <_<

BR/

Ole

 
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I had an outbreak of these guys a few years back. The first thing you’ll want to do is get any dead roaches out of your cages as soon as you see them and dispose of them outside. That will take care of most of the problem. I also lowered the humidity some, which helped some what but works better to get rid of fruit flies. I’ve tried to make a trap for them before; I found a way that I caught about ten per day on average but that’s just a drop in the bucket. Those fly strips that hang from the ceiling work well too if they are close enough to the colonies. Good luck getting rid of those pesky lil’ buggers!

 
BugmanPrice,

Thanks for the advice.

Did you remove any food from the menus in your cultures??

I ask because it might seem that moist food will attract the flies more (once being in).

BR/

Ole

 
OBJ said:
Did you remove any food from the menus in your cultures??
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Hello,

I actually didn't change the diet any. If you think food might be the problem it very well could be (any moist high protein food could attract them I assume). I usually feed them every three days and alternate between dry koi/dog/cat food and then fresh fruits/vegetables. The days I add the dry food I also squirt some water on the opposite side of the cage to moisten the substrate. I don't know, that cleared everything up for me and aside from a fruit fly problem last summer for a little while I've been pest free. I wish I could be more of a help! Good luck.

 
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