Spring Tails.. any cons?

[MJInsoCal]

Lots of pros for having them. Any cons? Issues with house infestation? Who watches the watchmen as far as who cleans the poop cleaner's poop?

 

[Nephrite]

They need something to eat in an enclosure relatively often or you'll see their numbers dwindle.

 

[Wolfram1]

depends on the kind of springtails, some spezies might harm your plants if you have any in the enclosure

the ones you buy in the petshop dont and i personally use them in all my enclosures and havent seen any cons

thy do escape and i sometimes see them up to a meter from the terrarium but since they are so moisture dependant they wont live long outside

 

[Paul1126]

No cons that I can think of, if they explode in numbers let the enclosure dry a bit and they will die off

 

[Tigger]

I would consider a house infestation a pro as they only eat mold and deaying matter. Springtails > Mold.

My T's are all slings. Those that are are around 1 inch+ are in Really Useful Boxes that measure about 5x4 inches by 3 inches high and springtails work really well. I have some very tiny slings around 1/4 inch or less kept in pill bottles and originally I tapped 3 or 4 springtails into each. Within a couple of weeks there were so many I was worried it would stress my slings so I changed out the substrate and now I don't use them in those enclosures. When you have an 1/8 inch H. chilensis sling you can't exactly just let the substrate dry out.

Also, no one watches the Watchmen. Damon Lindelof used the name to trick people into watching him work through his white guilt. That's why it was cancelled after one season.

 

[Tenandra]

Difficult to maintain when you have a desert species such as a chalcodes, As springtails like moisture you may risk making the tank suitable for the springtails and not the spider.

 

[Dorifto]

If you find a lot of springtails that means there could be another bigger "problem", mold or rotten materials. They eat organic rotten material, mold... etc. so if you have a infestation, that means that the substrate is full of this kind of stuf. They are harnless to the T´s so there is no need to worry about them.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

None that I can think of

 

[EpicEpic]

If you find a lot of springtails that means there could be another bigger "problem", mold or rotten materials. They eat organic rotten material, mold... etc. so if you have a infestation, that means that the substrate is full of this kind of stuf. They are harnless to the T´s so there is no need to worry about them.

I've always wondered...if they don't make it in an enclosure for whatever reason...and die off...will that illicit other paradites to come feed off of them?

 

[Dorifto]

I've always wondered...if they don't make it in an enclosure for whatever reason...and die off...will that illicit other paradites to come feed off of them?

Then you will have mummy springtails xD, usually they die from dehydration. The mites, nematodes, mold... will eat them.

 

[EpicEpic]

Then you will have mummy springtails xD, usually they die from dehydration. The mites, nematodes, mold... will eat them.

So yes. That's the reason I haven't introduced the culture I'm working on to any enclosures yet.

Worried that if for some reason they don't work out ill have a problem on my hands
.

Thanks Dorifto!

 

[Dorifto]

They give more benefits than problems. They are very resilient, don't be afraid of them. They keep at bay, nematodes, mites, fungus... etc

 

[EpicEpic]

They give more benefits than problems. They are very resilient, don't be afraid of them. They keep at bay, nematodes, mites, fungus... etc

I know that's why i have a culture going for my moister enclosures...im just afraid if the enclosure happens to get too dry or they dont find enough food....ill have a mite explosion! Don't fix what isn't broken ya know? I'm sure ill seed the enclosures soon enough

 

[The Grym Reaper]

They give more benefits than problems. They are very resilient, don't be afraid of them. They keep at bay, nematodes, mites, fungus... etc

If you end up with soil nematodes in your enclosures then there's a good chance that you're massively over-moistening your sub.

Mites (the ones you'll likely encounter as a tarantula keeper), soil nematodes, and springtails all do the same job (feeding on decaying organic matter), everyone cacks themselves about the first two though.

 

[Dorifto]

If you end up with soil nematodes in your enclosures then there's a good chance that you're massively over-moistening your sub.

Mites (the ones you'll likely encounter as a tarantula keeper), soil nematodes, and springtails all do the same job (feeding on decaying organic matter), everyone cacks themselves about the first two though.

Unfortunately I had them in one of my previous enclosure. One plant had a nematode infestation, my bad for not verifying the plant before planting in the enclosure, and they thrived too much, because I only had few springtails in the enclosure. I added more springtails, and isopods and everything went back to normal.

 

[Dorifto]

I know that's why i have a culture going for my moister enclosures...im just afraid if the enclosure happens to get too dry or they dont find enough food....ill have a mite explosion! Don't fix what isn't broken ya know? I'm sure ill seed the enclosures soon enough

Nah, there isn't going to be any kind of explosion xD Imho they work better with some dwarf isopods, they work very well together.

 

[jay5597]

Lots of pros for having them. Any cons? Issues with house infestation? Who watches the watchmen as far as who cleans the poop cleaner's poop?

I don’t see their cons.
But, I used to have fungus gnat issue. Then I introduced springtails into the enclosure of my moisture dependent species. Then all the fungus gnat are gone in around a month.
Which helps a lot. Since, I keep my tarantulas in my bedroom.

 

[MJInsoCal]

Very much appreciated, all the responses. x2 To Tigger for the Watchmen, HBO, comment. lol the show was def interesting.

 

[0311usmc]

I personally don't see any pros with having springtails. I like looking in on my tarantulas and only seeing tarantulas. I don't want to see a bunch of other small bugs roaming around with my tarantulas. I use my tongs to remove boluses or anything similar and haven't had to use a clean up crew because I am the clean up crew. Never needed springtails and I will never use them.

For those that do use them I am not giving you a hard time I just don't see a need for them if you spot clean with tongs.

 

[Dorifto]

I personally don't see any pros with having springtails. I like looking in on my tarantulas and only seeing tarantulas. I don't want to see a bunch of other small bugs roaming around with my tarantulas. I use my tongs to remove boluses or anything similar and haven't had to use a clean up crew because I am the clean up crew. Never needed springtails and I will never use them.

For those that do use them I am not giving you a hard time I just don't see a need for them if you spot clean with tongs.

One reason is that is less disturbing for the T, than being removing unwanted things with tongs, and also is more secure for the keeper, less chance to get bitten by mistake by the T. Leave the job to the springtails, isopods etc. they also keep the enclosure free of mold, try to pick up mold with tongs xD

Another reason is when you have big enclosures like me, like vivariums with real plants etc. they do all the job for you. they eat boluses, poo, dead plants etc. Once or twice a year you can clean a little bit the enclosure and it´s done




One week and the dubia leftovers will dissapear without picking them.