are these springtails?(not sure where this goes)

[codykrr]

ok well this is a very very crappy pic of whats in my water dishes...maybe springtails? there soooo small its hard to tell

View attachment 77316

 

[codykrr]

thats with a 10X macro filter and still to small.....sorry for the bad quality i really am just soo hard to get.

 

[Galapoheros]

It's reeeaal hard to tell but Springtails do group up like that on "top" of water. What happens it they get caught there in the meniscus(I had to look it up to see how to spell it). They seem to try and hop out back on to land but don't quite make it much of the time. The water slops up the edges and they slide on top of the water to the bottom of the meniscus.

 

[Moltar]

Yes, i'm pretty sure those are springtails. The body shape, white color and antennae all look right even though it's hard to see.

 

[sinflspeed]

I am pretty sure as well. They will seem to infest your tanks but are not harmful. More of a nuisence if anything. I have kept them in my frog tanks as feeders for a long time, but my T's do not eat them. I have found that leaving food in with your feeders will only help them thrive. Not saying you don't but just keep an eye out for any dead feeders or leftover food sources. The dead feeder and moisture will provide ideal breeding enviroment for them. If you remove the food or dead feeder and it seems like the substrate is moving than it is spring tails.

 

[codykrr]

well that particular pic is in my B. smithi water dish....i keep her sunstrate bone dry!....and never leave left overs..so makes me wonder...as of right now though there in aout 5 of my enclosures. and i dont see any except in the water dishes...but these things are freaking tiny! but thaks guys...also is it true that certain species of springtail acually can be human parasites?

 

[sinflspeed]

Not sure about the human parasite part. If you keep your substrate bone dry it is actually good becasue they are actually on the hunt for water/moisture and are committing suicide by getting into the water dish. This will help rid your cages of them.

 

[skips]

well that particular pic is in my B. smithi water dish....i keep her sunstrate bone dry!....and never leave left overs..so makes me wonder...as of right now though there in aout 5 of my enclosures. and i dont see any except in the water dishes...but these things are freaking tiny! but thaks guys...also is it true that certain species of springtail acually can be human parasites?

They're not mites are they, if they're that tiny? If they are springtails I assume they'll be gone soon since without really high moisture they don't do well. Springtails are just tiny hexapods, though some say they are less related to other hexapods than others. There morphology is completely and utterly wrong for being an endo or ectoparasite. I don't think you'll be able to find any credible case anywhere of parasitism.