Is this a horrible idea?

[The_Dude]

OK, I've been looking into feeder alternatives in order to exploit more entertaining meal times. Namely, flying feeders. And I know wild caught bugs are a no-no, which I agree with, and I've had wax moths (not sure on the term, but moths from wax worms - you get it) but that's very time consuming.

So here's my idea.. and please feel free to brutally shut it down in case you see any major problems with it because it just popped into my head. What if I set out some food leftovers in order to attract some common flies, allow them to lay eggs, and then keep some kind of screen over the top so I can harvest the newly pupated flies. Their whole life cycle from egg to adult is only like 1-2 weeks so this could prove to be a very sustainable and readily available food source.

This would also void all fear of possible pesticide contamination. And would be a super awesome feeding time!

Comments? Complaints? All opinions welcome.

 

[1hughjazzspider]

You realize how bad this is likely to smell right? I mean flies basically eat garbage don't they? Not to mention don't they have like a ton of offspring. And they're total lifespan isn't much more than a month I don't think. What are the chances you could even catch a fly to feed to your tarantula without killing it?

 

[grayzone]

i say go for it... what could go wrong? crix are only 1$ for a dozen but a varied diet is a good thing.. its a good idea for entertainment, if nothing else ... your ts would do back flips catching flies lol

 

[Ben Oliver]

flys

the one problem i can see is that flys only lay their eggs on rotting meat. but to try different feeding ideas that is a good idea to try to vary their diet. i use many different types of feeders for my T's and lizards.

 

[The_Dude]

Let me state that I did not plan on doing this in my house lol. I know that flies eat garbage, so it will most definitely be outside somewhere or in the garage. And I didn't mean for it to seem like a staple diet either. Just something to do every now and then to spice it up. Yes, crickets are cheap, but nerve medication is not... because I hate them... that bad. I've started another roach colony but gotta wait for it to start multiplying before I start feeding. Like I said, just something to try.. not a replacement or staple.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

You could. Try it if you want but roaches are much better
Were I live the petstore charges $1.20 ea dozen crickets they raised the price to 10cents eAch

 

[grayzone]

i know this has no relation really, but ive also read that ts will eat portions of beef hearts. id imagine its more boring than feeding crix, but i bet its nutritious as heck

 

[mtyrrell]

I have seen this done before buy a guy in a local pet store. he used to buy maggot's from fishing bait stores and let them hatch into flies for his lizzard not sure what it was but was fun to watch it chasing them around.

 

[jayefbe]

I know some people do culture house flies for dart frogs, so it's possible and is done from time to time. You might want to check out a dart frog forum to see if they have information on how to do it. I personally think it's not worth the work, but whatever floats your boat.

 

[Bigboy]

i know this has no relation really, but ive also read that ts will eat portions of beef hearts. id imagine its more boring than feeding crix, but i bet its nutritious as heck

Beef hearts are hearty (like my pun? Of course you do.) but they really aren't all that nutritious considering they are made up of heart muscle alone. Whole animals are a much better bet.

A fly colony? I say go for it, but keep lots of pictures because I want a thread once its done.

 

[pavel]

It's not that big a deal folks. Just as with food cultures for fruit flies, there are cultures for houseflies and blue bottle flies. Mantid hobbyists have been using such for quite some time as some mantid species show little to no interest in anything else. And just as with Dros. media, that formulated for the other flies isn't so "fragrant". Just do some Googling .... here's one to get you started.

http://mantisplace.com/feederinsects.html#Spikes

 

[Obelisk]

They do sell adult house flies as food for praying mantids. The people at http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php will know how to raise them and everything.

 

[Bill S]

I mean flies basically eat garbage don't they?

They eat FOOD. They really do not know or care that sometimes it's garbage produced by humans. As with other insects raised in captivity, there are clean media that can be used - you don't need to gather your fly media from the garbage can.

 

[The_Dude]

It's not that big a deal folks. Just as with food cultures for fruit flies, there are cultures for houseflies and blue bottle flies. Mantid hobbyists have been using such for quite some time as some mantid species show little to no interest in anything else. And just as with Dros. media, that formulated for the other flies isn't so "fragrant". Just do some Googling .... here's one to get you started.

http://mantisplace.com/feederinsects.html#Spikes


Holy crap I should've done my homework! I didn't even know house fly cultures existed! I mean I was aware of fruit flies and what have you, just never would have expected people would actually want to raise house flies haha. Then again, myself and many many others raise roaches so... moot point.

OK cool. So I think I will try one of those pupae kits and also start my own project just to see how it goes. Thanks for the advice everyone! Gah my T's are gonna FLIP out!