Maggots: Nature's Candy

[Synirr]

I just finished completely redoing my white worm cultures because, silly me, I didn't block the airholes and they were infested with fruit fly maggots, which were out-competing the worms (I actually found a total of only 10 worms left between my two cultures)
I've been feeding the maggots to my fish when I see them, and the funny thing is, my imbellis actually prefers them over the white worms!! Today I gave him several maggots, and when I offered him a worm he took it into his mouth, then spit it out and turned his nose up at it!
He may like the maggots better, but he had better get used to worms again because I don't particularly like having fruit flies hatching out in the house

 

[Mina]

LOL, he got a little spoiled with some gourmet food, huh? I know what you mean about the flys though. I had that happen once in my quar. tank. Had a pleco in there at the time. One day I noticed a bunch of green flys in my fish room, still not sure what they are...the next there were a bunch of little wiggle-larva in my quarantine but none in the main tanks. It took forever to catch those things but my fish loved them.

 

[Elise]

Gross! Man, and the bloodworms give me the willies, maggots would tweak me out. Lol, I bet they would love them though!

 

[abstract]

just FYI they do sell "flightless/wingless" fruitfly cultures at many chain stores now....usually in the reptile section

 

[wuvmybetta]

As gross as it is, they DO like them I suppose it's okay since they come out of the same culture as the other worms. The fruit flies boggle my mind because they come in spurts, like once a month.

By the way, I recently started using coconut fiber as a culturing substrate and so far it's a hit. The culture seems to be growing slower but it's so much cleaner. I likey. I found it in Petco, as a hermit crab substrate of all things , I've wanted some forever and I thought it was next to impossible to find. I'm going to use it as substrate in my wild spawn tanks as well. I did the PH test for about a week, it took it from 7.6 to 7.0 within a few hours, but remained steady from there on out.

 

[GuppyDude]

whats a good way to culture fruit fly maggots? iv always wanted to try this but all i could thing of useing was dead animals, and i dont think thats healthy

 

[wuvmybetta]

whats a good way to culture fruit fly maggots? iv always wanted to try this but all i could thing of useing was dead animals, and i dont think thats healthy

They'll eat anything. In the worm cultures there is wet dirt with whatever food source and they grow well there. Don't you have worm cultures,gd? If not, I'll hook you up. Maggots included

 

[SRC]

You make a "mash" for the fruit flies.

Mashed potatoes, sugar, and water (fruit or any other "raw" fruit spoiles your culture too quickly.

It lasts about a week before you have to transfer the adults over to something else..then as the babies re-hatch (they go from eggs to larvea to coccoon's to adults) and turn into adults you just keep transfering them over to clean batches.

At a good time..you'll get up to about 10 "cultures" going at a time (you will have to give up some larvea though..when the culture spoils...it's best to just go on and throw it out..babies and all).

I use a fork and wedge it in the jar..so they have a way to get their feet out of the mash..otherwise they'll die from getting stuck and staying wet. It's also easier to get a fork (instead of anything like plastic canvas) out before you transfer them over to a new yar..via a funnel. They can't grasp the glass and slide right out (but they can that plastic cavas)...but they can climb the jar walls...so you gotta tap the sides to knock them down. if they ever get out they scatter quick .

Rubber band a papertowel across the top to let air in but keep winged (regular) fruit flies out...if they ever mate..your once wingless fruit flies will become either winged or winged AND flighted..and if that happens it is a problem. Your culture is then ruined and you have to throw that culture out.

Just a note... ( the mash is putrid smelling btw)

 

[Synirr]

Ooooo, good tip about the coconut fiber, Wuv!! I've been wondering where to buy it! I was also thinking of using something like that mixed with the sand as a substrate in my imbellis tank

 

[GuppyDude]

i do have a worm culture wuv, you sent me one, but i dont keep it outside, so it doesn't attract maggots. i think some rotten apple cores and other rotting fruit stuff will attract the flys pretty well, im thinking ill just feed the maggots until they are a decent size and then clean em up and freeze them for winter, i dunno about everywhere else but in about 2 months stuff here gets cold again

 

[wuvmybetta]

i do have a worm culture wuv, you sent me one, but i dont keep it outside, so it doesn't attract maggots. i think some rotten apple cores and other rotting fruit stuff will attract the flys pretty well, im thinking ill just feed the maggots until they are a decent size and then clean em up and freeze them for winter, i dunno about everywhere else but in about 2 months stuff here gets cold again

Oh heh heh, I thought I had! I don't know how to NOT get fruit flies, so I figured you might not have one
You're lucky you live somewhere cool. Insects thrive here in Texas.

I was reading that Goldstein's Complete Guide to Bettas book and he was talking about cultures and closed with "Eventually your cultures will become contaminated with fruit flies. These do no harm and are also food for your fish", so I assume it's normal.