GBB-Mites

[ErgoProxy]

Well this was a bit of a surprise to me, since I've never had a mite issue. While testing out a new macro-flash bracket rig I made, I was taking some photos of part of my collection, when I noticed that my GGB had mites. If I hadn't been working on this test, I wouldn't have noticed them (she's still a juvie and not full-sized, and the mites are tiny).

From what I can tell, they are either

1. Grain mites, possibly in the hypopus stage

2. Some type of "true" parasitic mite.

A few months ago, from some other photos the GBB was clean. What possibly occurred was I didn't have a substrate change completely dry enough (bed-a-beast, crushed coconut...not wet, mind you but a bit moist) and after a feeding I missed a couple of cricket parts (legs etc), which is where I am guessing the mites came from (crickets, hitching a ride). Otherwise perhaps from the substrate itself?

She is in an isolation tank now, on DRY paper towels, with a water bowl. I am still feeding her (roaches) as she is really active and doesn't turn down prey items. Hopefully this will dry them out/kill them off over time. The substrate has been discarded and the enclosure thoroughly cleaned.

Now for the mites. All of them don't look the nice "white" of those annoying little grain mites that could come in on the crickets. Some are a more tan-brown color, and some even grey or black (but still a transparent). I am wondering if those darker ones are ones already dead, but still attached. They appear to be concentrated along the front appendage joints (legs, chelicerae) and some on the eye fovea (ocular tubercle). There are only scant ones towards the joints of the back legs (most in fact are around the chelicerae). During the transfer attempting to brush some off did more to annoy the spider than knock off the mites.

So, they are most likely either grain mites, in that resting stage, or ones that truly attached to the spider due to limited food source (possible) or some odd parasitic mite that somehow got into the enclosure.

BTW...I checked the other spiders and no mites....it was just this one (makes me think again, grain mites). Spiders are kept drier, with water dishes.

Here are two photos detailing the issue. You cannot miss them (looks HORRID, but the spider appears to be doing well).

Hopefully this will all clear up with the drying, and not require something more drastic. :wall: :wall: :wall: :wall:

 

[Talkenlate04]

Good god that might be one of the worst mite infestations on a T I have seen in a long time.
The one thing I would do different then you are doing is use wet paper towels. Mites need moisture, and right now they are clinging to your T to get it anywhere they can. Moisten the paper towels, keep the setup in a warm place, and replace the paper towels several times daily. The mites should come off the T over time and head for the wet paper towels. I would also stop feeding her. You are providing the mites with scrap food and guts to eat. Your T can with stand no food for a while, but the mites can't.
I actually found this today in my GBB tank, but they were only in the water dish. Tons of mites, and a few baby crickets, but nothing on my T.

 

[ErgoProxy]

No lie!

Yeah, it's the worst one I've ever experienced that is for certain, and again it wouldn't have been even noticeable without the high magnification of the macro lens (you can kind of see some things on the spider, esp. now that I know they are there).

Today up against the side of the tank I got a good look at the ventral side. A couple of tarsi had some packed in, nothing noticeable beneath the abdomen (esp. around the book lung slits).

One thing I have observed normally "grain mites" if that is what these are, do not like bright lights on them. Well the flashlight didn't cause ANY activity with the mites on the spider. Makes me wonder if this is more of a dispersal phase of the mites and they are just "suckered down" tight to the exoskeleton...some of the place they are attached to would be difficult to "feed" of the "T" (like very hard sections of the basal segment of the Chelicerae, and even setae/spines on the leg). And that dark color of a number of them...almost like they are "dead".

I'll give that "wet towel" method a try. There is that contrasting suggestion in the "mite" threads out here...some suggest the wet towels, some BONE DRY (except for a water dish). If they were dispersing for water I would think the water dish would contain a number of them, esp. given she has drunk from it. Nope...clean...none.

Feeding....well if the tank were moist I would be more worried about it, but the tank is dry and the remains were BONE DRY as well. No mites on them at all.

I personally don't think these will come off until a molt, given how "attached" they appear to be.

Spider otherwise appears to be in "good health". Eats well, drinks, active (not lethargic) and haven't observed what I would refer to as any abnormal behavior.

Odd it was the GBB...

Time will tell...

 

[Talkenlate04]

Ya I don't think she will die ether. But you are going to have to keep a close eye on her so that when she molts you can take that old nasty skin out asap.

 

[Thompson08]

holy crap. That is a lot of mites. I'm no expert at getting mites off a T but I would do what talkenlate said. How do mites get into the cage anyway?

 

[baf236]

Ergo,

What are the white rice like grains in the T's mouth. Are those cricket eggs?

 

[Talkenlate04]

Yep those are cricket eggs. Looks yummy huh!

 

[calum]

holy carp......

 

[ErgoProxy]

Ya I don't think she will die ether. But you are going to have to keep a close eye on her so that when she molts you can take that old nasty skin out asap.

OH YOU BET! When she is close to a molt again I'll take her to work everyday with me as well (unless it's dead of winter...that would be a bit "trickier"..

I really want to get that skin too underneath some high "scope" magnification to see if those mites were inactive/attached/dead etc....

If it was what I thought to be "life threatening" at this point I believe I would try to "anesthetize" the spider with C02, get it under the scope and scrape off as many as I could while she was "out".


Oh and to answer that other question, if these are indeed grain mites, they come in on the feeder crickets. I have a roach colony (discoid) but often times a nymph roach will dig down into the substrate before it gets near the spider. If I had a larger space I would raise my own crickets (think I may try that anyway).

One thing I've though about though is I believe you may get more mites from the adult "winged" crickets where they hide beneath the slightly hardened forewings....perhaps feeding a few more larger juvie crickets would be in order....

 

[Travis K]

In the case of my Haplopelmas if I keep there water dish full and let every thing dry without feeding for awhile might the mites die off? or will they just parasitize the T?

 

[ErgoProxy]

In the case of my Haplopelmas if I keep there water dish full and let every thing dry without feeding for awhile might the mites die off? or will they just parasitize the T?

I know the suggestion is out there to purchase some predatory mites and also add in some Isopods to the Haplopelma enclosures (or any that like it a bit more humid than others). The Isopods (and also Springtails (Collembola) will clean up the bits of cricket parts you may miss and the predatory mites (and/or small Staphiliind (Rove) beetles) will take care of the mites...

But I don't believe the predatory mites would go on the spider and clean it off of any "bad" mites (not sure on this one, but it would be GREAT if there was a species of mite that would do this).

I believe that is what occurred though in my case...and I'm not wholly convinced this is complete parasitism with my GBB....they are attached well, but they could be in a dormant dispersal phase. Those mites are known to attach themselves with formed "suction" disc during that phase. It's hard to tell given the size of the mites in this case. They do appear to be rooted on well.

But I think it can happen if there is a BLOOM of mites and they run out of a food source but it's still humid enough for them to survive....that they might go after the "T", which would be a large concern in smaller slings for certain.

Time will tell on this one.

 

[Travis K]

for the record the mites on the haplos are few and far between. For now I am going to keep them on the dryer side and hope that gets rid of the mites?

 

[crpy]

good plan

 

[Aurelia]

Are you able to hold that spider? Have you seen this thread? That might be worth a shot to at least get some of them off. Poor lil spider.

 

[ian robbins]

It works.

I have witnessed Talken's method work well.

I found changing it out alot and not getting too damp helps it work faster.

Also if you have them, use the black and Orange Halloween napkins so when you pick the napkin out you will notice they are on there.

and I didnt feed mine for almost a month which is about the time it took to get the mites off enough for mysatisfaction never did get'em all off until the T molted.
I also left the molt in there for a two days(oops) and the mites never climbed back on the spider, they just stayed on the exuvia:?

good luck, I hope she is fine!

 

[ErgoProxy]

I have witnessed Talken's method work well.

I found changing it out alot and not getting too damp helps it work faster.

Also if you have them, use the black and Orange Halloween napkins so when you pick the napkin out you will notice they are on there.

and I didnt feed mine for almost a month which is about the time it took to get the mites off enough for mysatisfaction never did get'em all off until the T molted.
I also left the molt in there for a two days(oops) and the mites never climbed back on the spider, they just stayed on the exuvia:?

good luck, I hope she is fine!

Thanks....I'll give that a try. Again though they don't look at all that mobile and I would have thought to find some in the water dish...none...


The feeding issue....I might be tempted to feed the spider from time to time if hungry since she's still small to perhaps force the growth a bit to get that molt to occur quicker. I think the mites may have remained on the molt like they did due to the moisture from the "molting lube" that is produced between the old and new exoskeletons, giving them a water and a food source (esp. molted exuvium). Any longer though and once it had throughly dried out it would have been "March of the Mites"....

I believe she'll be fine. She's not a sling and I did catch this. She's active and eats/drinks well. No abnormal behaviors noticed...

 

[ErgoProxy]

Are you able to hold that spider? Have you seen this thread? That might be worth a shot to at least get some of them off. Poor lil spider.

Yeah, when I was researching ways to get rid of the mites I noticed that tread...and was a bit AWED by how calm the T was during all this.

This GBB? Well she didn't even like the brush I used very much when I had her in a bottle-top transfer "cup" and attempted to brush some off the ocular area....what I could determine, given the stiffness of the paintbrush was these guys are really attached.

If I try that again I may try something akin to a stiff "pipe-cleaner"....

She's a bit "fiesty" at times to try that scraping technique with, but IF it was looking seriously life threatening (as in the spider was showing problematic signs) I would use the CO2 to anesthetize her and have a go at it...

 

[ErgoProxy]

for the record the mites on the haplos are few and far between. For now I am going to keep them on the dryer side and hope that gets rid of the mites?

If these came in on the spiders (esp. if they were wild caught), a period like you are talking esp. given the very small numbers of them will take care of it.

With a water dish even the normally higher humidity Haplopelma I've found can do well with dryer substrate...esp. if they are a bit older (not slings or small juvies).

Good luck with this....


(I personally know very few Arachnologists, outside of the Acarologists, who like mites or their hard cousins the ticks)

 

[ShellsandScales]

Try a mite trap! film canister smeared on the inside with petroleum jelly and with small holes poked in it. Put in a dead cricket and it will attract any mobile mites in the cage they climb in the jelly and suffocate. Not my Idea but thought I would pass it along. I might try to, at least around the eyes, carefully scrape off some of those mites. Thats just me. My GBB's have all been super mellow and would be accepting of any physical intrusion like that.

 

[ErgoProxy]

Try a mite trap! film canister smeared on the inside with petroleum jelly and with small holes poked in it. Put in a dead cricket and it will attract any mobile mites in the cage they climb in the jelly and suffocate. Not my Idea but thought I would pass it along. I might try to, at least around the eyes, carefully scrape off some of those mites. Thats just me. My GBB's have all been super mellow and would be accepting of any physical intrusion like that.

Thanks...I was thinking about doing that after reading about that in one thread. Think someone even used a "prawn" as bait...

I may give it another go with trying to remove the mites from the ocular area...last attempt did nothing, but this time perhaps this artists tool that resembles a stiff pipecleaner on a paintbrush handle...forgot what you call it.

Heh, well this one is a bit jumping (perhaps due to age...it's still young/smaller) and also kicks hairs....