Kinds of cricket death

[Bizzarrini]

I feed my collection store bought crickets. I keep them for 3-4 days at least before feeding and only feed organic produce as to minimize the accumulation pesticides in my tarantulas. In the first week there is between 20-50% mortality rate which is caused by a number of things. After this, my crickets tend to die less than 10% a week. However, the deaths are almost always the same after the initial period. The cricket slows down and loses all energy, it sits in one spot and dies in 1-2 days. All that die seem to go this way. I kept one cricket alone and it lived for around 3 months and died after slowly becoming thinner and darker, I assume this is just old age. I wonder what causes this, I'm sure it's contagious but it seems to spread mostly by contact. Anyone have tips for minimizing this? And are afflicted alive crickets ok to feed?

 

[CJJon]

Need way more information. Most likely husbandry issues. What enclosure, temps, specific foods, etc. etc. Pics too.

Better yet, ditch the crickets and get a small colony of roaches going.

 

[antinous]

How are you keeping them? The more ventilation, the better. Minimize the amount of liquids are in the enclosure as they tend to drown a lot. I’ve noticed that if I don’t take out a dead one, more tend to follow suit, but if I’m prompt with removing dead ones they don’t die as quickly. I go with mealworms because they last much longer and aren’t as much of a pain

 

[Bizzarrini]

Need way more information. Most likely husbandry issues. What enclosure, temps, specific foods, etc. etc. Pics too.

Better yet, ditch the crickets and get a small colony of roaches going.

Kept in a plastic bin with folded paper towels for shelter, 70-78 degrees, fed carrot, spinach, lettuce, and oats (varies a little bit), protein like chicken if they cannibalize. Not gonna mess with taking pictures, I keep my crickets like most breeders. Don't want any roach colonies, a small bin with 5-10 crickets is enough to excite the miss.

How are you keeping them? The more ventilation, the better. Minimize the amount of liquids are in the enclosure as they tend to drown a lot. I’ve noticed that if I don’t take out a dead one, more tend to follow suit, but if I’m prompt with removing dead ones they don’t die as quickly. I go with mealworms because they last much longer and aren’t as much of a pain

Holes on top and sides of bin for vents. No liquids are kept in their bin besides an few drops on spinach or lettuce leaves for drink. I remove dead ones. I feed mealworms every once in a while as a treat, they seem kinda fatty for every meal.

 

[MikeofBorg]

Crickets die easily especially this time of year. We are artificially making them breed all year when they usually only breed in the summer then lay an overwinter clutch of eggs to start anew in spring. But 50% seems a bit high. Are the paper towels just plain Jane no dyes or designs colored on them? Also is anyone spraying maybe Febreese or some type of air freshening product near their enclosure or cleaning products?

 

[Teal]

Are they large, adult crickets? Those have a very short lifespan.

Crickets also don't live in colonies naturally... they get overcrowded easily and it causes a lot of die off. Ventilation is a huge thing, also.

Just an aside, "organic" does NOT mean pesticide-free... It means they use natural pesticides instead of synthetic ones, believing they are somehow safer.

 

[MikeofBorg]

Are they large, adult crickets? Those have a very short lifespan.

Crickets also don't live in colonies naturally... they get overcrowded easily and it causes a lot of die off. Ventilation is a huge thing, also.

Just an aside, "organic" does NOT mean pesticide-free... It means they use natural pesticides instead of synthetic ones, believing they are somehow safer.

Overcrowding is a huge killer. I have my colony in a huge tote container and never go above 100 crickets in it. More than that and I seem to have big die offs; even with extra food.

 

[Bizzarrini]

Crickets die easily especially this time of year. We are artificially making them breed all year when they usually only breed in the summer then lay an overwinter clutch of eggs to start anew in spring. But 50% seems a bit high. Are the paper towels just plain Jane no dyes or designs colored on them? Also is anyone spraying maybe Febreese or some type of air freshening product near their enclosure or cleaning products?

The 50% is right after getting them from petco, I assume the initial die off is normal since they are cared for very poorly at the store. I keep less than 10 crickets at a time, so I doubt they are over crowded. The paper towels are plain, and I do not use any cleaner near them, and I have a bird so aerosols are never used.

Are they large, adult crickets? Those have a very short lifespan.

Crickets also don't live in colonies naturally... they get overcrowded easily and it causes a lot of die off. Ventilation is a huge thing, also.

Just an aside, "organic" does NOT mean pesticide-free... It means they use natural pesticides instead of synthetic ones, believing they are somehow safer.

The crickets are large, but most molt at least once. Like I said ventilation should be ok, holes and top and sides. I know pesticides are still used but in general natural pesticides and desiccants are much less potent and toxic.

 

[MikeofBorg]

The 50% is right after getting them from petco, I assume the initial die off is normal since they are cared for very poorly at the store. I keep less than 10 crickets at a time, so I doubt they are over crowded. The paper towels are plain, and I do not use any cleaner near them, and I have a bird so aerosols are never used.

The crickets are large, but most molt at least once. Like I said ventilation should be ok, holes and top and sides. I know pesticides are still used but in general natural pesticides and desiccants are much less potent and toxic.

Oh yeah Petco crickets are kept terrible. I've never seen the takeout crickets with a moist sponge in them. The crickets are always kept bone dry with no source of water. First thing they go for is a source of water once I get them in the tote.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

If I remember correctly, their entire life cycle (from hatching to dying of old age) only lasts for about 4 months.

When I kept them I just fed oatmeal mixed with fish food (I never gave them veg/fruit) and water crystals to keep them hydrated (make sure these never run out or they cannibalise), good ventilation, plenty of places to hide, clean often and remove dead crickets as and when found.

Had hardly any die off (less than 10% inc. DOAs) and almost no smell to speak of.

Then again, I think the crickets we have over here are much hardier than the ones you get stateside

 

[kevinlowl]

can you take a picture of one cricket? i find that there are two different types of crickets at my pet store and the light brown type dies very easily whereas the dark brown type is hardier.

 

[MikeofBorg]

If I remember correctly, their entire life cycle (from hatching to dying of old age) only lasts for about 4 months.

When I kept them I just fed oatmeal mixed with fish food (I never gave them veg/fruit) and water crystals to keep them hydrated (make sure these never run out or they cannibalise), good ventilation, plenty of places to hide, clean often and remove dead crickets as and when found.

Had hardly any die off (less than 10% inc. DOAs) and almost no smell to speak of.

Then again, I think the crickets we have over here are much hardier than the ones you get stateside

I think many of the crickets here in the states are very linebred, making genetic diseases and pathogens more of a problem for them to handle. Seems like the stores here all use the same supplier in Florida, least here in Ohio. They also have a lot of losses this time of year in transit due to the cold weather. No one cares if crickets stay warm in the back of a truck.

 

[Bizzarrini]

They are house crickets, species is Acheta domesticus. That's all we get here. They are light brown, but when they mature out they get pretty dark. Wish I had a picture of the one that lived 3 months with me, he was so much darker by the end and had a very pronounced exoskeleton in comparison, he stayed pretty small though. The 50% mortality rate is usually during the summer here in texas, I assume they are getting roasted, they usually give me double right after a shipment because a bunch die off in the first few days they get them.
Anyways I'm not sure what the disease/ailment they are having. Like I said, they slow down, lose coordination, obviously something neurological but they never flail around or roll onto their backs. I assume the afflicted are ok to feed as long they are still alive? Thinking of give a leg off one to a sling.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

They are house crickets, species is Acheta domesticus. That's all we get here.

Yeah, we generally get silent, black or banded crickets here in the UK and all of those are pretty hardy (not used banded myself but you'd have to keep silents/blacks in some pretty crappy conditions for them to die off in droves). You can get banded in the US but they're harder to find IIRC.

 

[CJJon]

For keeping ten crickets at a time I would't really fuss so much...are you really feeding them chicken? Get a plastic cricket keeper and some flukers cricket cubes and add some water crystals and forget it.

Also, immediate 50% die off is not normal. Even for Petco crickets.

 

[CJJon]

Josh's Frogs has banded crickets. Gryllodes sigillatus

 

[Galapoheros]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cricket_paralysis_virus I raise my own feeders but I've had to order domesticus a few times and when I do, I feed them out asap because that virus is so common. A raise a Gryllus sps. so I don't have that die-off prob anymore. I did have luck for a couple of years with domesticus, they like it really hot, like mid 80sF.

 

[Bizzarrini]

For keeping ten crickets at a time I would't really fuss so much...are you really feeding them chicken? Get a plastic cricket keeper and some flukers cricket cubes and add some water crystals and forget it.

Also, immediate 50% die off is not normal. Even for Petco crickets.

They like the chicken and beef every once in a while, stops them cannibalizing. I don't know if 50% is normal or not, it's only that high during summer months when the batches are fresh. I assume it's normal because the crickets just got fried in the back of a box truck.

Josh's Frogs has banded crickets. Gryllodes sigillatus

I'll see about those, would they would be any less hassle than a roach colony?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cricket_paralysis_virus I raise my own feeders but I've had to order domesticus a few times and when I do, I feed them out asap because that virus is so common. A raise a Gryllus sps. so I don't have that die-off prob anymore. I did have luck for a couple of years with domesticus, they like it really hot, like mid 80sF.

85 seems really hot, I couldn't keep them at that temp unless it was summer and they would be in an oily garage.

 

[CJJon]

I hate keeping crickets and would take a B. lateralis colony over them any day. Crickets are dicks.

 

[Galapoheros]

They like the chicken and beef every once in a while, stops them cannibalizing. I don't know if 50% is normal or not, it's only that high during summer months when the batches are fresh. I assume it's normal because the crickets just got fried in the back of a box truck.
I'll see about those, would they would be any less hassle than a roach colony?
85 seems really hot, I couldn't keep them at that temp unless it was summer and they would be in an oily garage.

The perfect environment, Houston, Summer and an oily garage. They'd do great for at least 3 months there. I have a project house near Hempstead. I can't remember how I kept them hot in winter, it was probably a heat mat that they say don't put on plastic, but I think I put it underneath the plastic tub anyway and the crickets congregated close to it in winter. But, anyway, that virus gets them and it's very common apparently.