Bugs in topsoil

[Theneil]

Howdy folks. I was just putting some topsoil i have into a tub for storage and i noticed there were several bugs crawling around on it and i was hoping somebody might k ow what they are and whether or not (hopefully not) they pose any threat to my tarantulas as i have already used this bag of topsoil for a few rehouses recently (before noticing the bugs obvioulsy) hopefully the pics are good enough. The bigs i got a pic of are prety small. probably .25-.375" long and only about .05" wide. I did add some spring tails to each of the enclosures i made with this if it makes a difference.

Actually once i looked at the picture it appears to be pairs of some sort of fly breeding. Oh yay. So probably really bad.

anyway here's pics.

 

[Theneil]

@cold blood
If i remember rightly you use the earthgro stuff from homedepot. Have you ever had any pests come in a bag?

 

[Krystal Anne]

I tried to use the same Earthgro topsoil @cold blood uses, but I learned that their contents vary per state. Mine (from California) had manure, compost, etc, and I know that attracts flies and pests, so I had to find something else. Maybe yours is similar to that or maybe it's just a bad batch, idk

 

[cold blood]

@cold blood
If i remember rightly you use the earthgro stuff from homedepot. Have you ever had any pests come in a bag?

Not that I ever noticed. krystal is right though, earthgro is bagged regionally so its contents will vary.

 

[Theneil]

Okay. Well this is the basic stuff just recommended for filling holes. No manure (at least not on the label) and i have used another bag in the past with out issue so i wasn't sure if this was an unlucky bag or a common issue. Guess there's no good way of knowing.

@Krystal Anne
@cold blood

Thank you!

 

[Gaherp]

Looks like fungus gnats for sure. Phorid flies are a bit more shaped like fruit flies. You can always bake your soil initially to remove any unwanted critters.

 

[Zevil]

100% fungus gnats. I used to see them a lot in my isopod culture. Keep the substrate dry and their larva will all die out.

 

[Theneil]

100% fungus gnats. I used to see them a lot in my isopod culture. Keep the substrate dry and their larva will all die out.

Ugh. i just rehoused my two Chilobrachys sp. i this stuff like a week ago. i hope they aren't too comfy since keeping them dry isn't going to happen.....

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Looks like fungus gnats for sure. Phlorid flies are a bit more shaped like fruit flies. You can always bake your soil initially to remove any unwanted critters.

I’m dealing with a massive invasion of swarms of Phlorid flies right now. How do I win the battle?

 

[Gaherp]

I had to deal with them before with dartfrogs and my isopod cultures. Transferred new moss and soil for the darts. for the isopod cultures I would let them dry up a bit and they slowly disappeared from the cultures. In the tarantula cages I would replace the soil which helped me get totally rid of them. Have not had a fungus gnat or phorid fly in a very long time(knock on wood).