# Millipede infestation



## Phyllobates azureus (Aug 18, 2010)

A while ago i found a few millipedes in my auratus viv. I removed them, no biggie. Now there are 20+ crawling around the viv. The ones last week must have mated. 
How do i get rid of them? The auratus are breeding and i want to keep any eggs safe. 
These seem to be common garden millipedes.


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

Ugh! I hate those! Some people have used CO2 to gas the tank. I'm not sure if any were totally successful. Here's a link to a thread about DIY CO2. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/care-sheets/57367-building-using-co2-generator-2.html#post497332

If it was me, I'd run out to PetCo and get a 10 gallon tank to set up for them, temporarily, then I tear down their tank, sanitize, toss the substrate and anything else a millipede can hide eggs in. I'm not one to play games with millipedes. HATE THEM!


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## suztor (Aug 14, 2011)

When I was a kid I used to have tea parties with millipedes,(they were the tea) there were easily hundreds of them in the basement where I played. The little brown ones about an inch long. 

I don't recall ever getting bit by one. I guess I have always had a hard time understanding the danger in those little guys.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Millipedes typically come into the tanks via soil (around the roots of plants for example) or from inside wood that was collected and used. It is also possible for them to hitch a ride in leaves that aren't well dried before adding them to the enclosure. 

Millipedes usually don't bother the eggs, however they can be an issue for tender plants. Some people choose to wait them out as the population typically booms and busts over time (but this can take more than a year). 

It should also be noted that some millipedes are found in the diet of D. auratus (see Cuadernos de herpetología - Trophic and microhabitat niche overlap in two sympatric dendrobatids from La Selva, Costa Rica ) 

Ed


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## Freeradical53 (Jan 25, 2008)

I don't see why the frogs wouldn't eat them especially the small ones. Kind of a hard exoskeleton. They could be unpleasant to look at...


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Freeradical53 said:


> I don't see why the frogs wouldn't eat them especially the small ones. Kind of a hard exoskeleton. They could be unpleasant to look at...


That and the medium term damage they do by feeding on plants typically makes people more interested in eliminating them. 

Probably the best method would be to pull the frogs and CO2 the tank for several days followed by another round 2-3 weeks later to see if that did the job. 

Ed


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## suztor (Aug 14, 2011)

I've been reading a bit about co2 bombing. (never hurts to be prepared) and I always wonder... Once everything is dead, do you pick out the dead bugs you can see? Or let them decompose and fertilized your soil?

Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

suztor said:


> I've been reading a bit about co2 bombing. (never hurts to be prepared) and I always wonder... Once everything is dead, do you pick out the dead bugs you can see? Or let them decompose and fertilized your soil?
> 
> Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk


Let them rot... 

Ed


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## swampfoxjjr (Nov 13, 2007)

I prefer to place their heads on the heads of pins and display them prominently in the viv as a warning to the others...


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## B-NICE (Jul 15, 2011)

They have a odor, I had a few in my viv after it was set up about a week but I picked them out. Tthat was months ago. Pic them by hand if that does work drop the bomb.


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## Phyllobates azureus (Aug 18, 2010)

_*UPDATE:*_ Got a good look at some hand-removed ones and there are actually two species- a small brown spirobolid 1-2 cm long and a larger polydesmid about 3 cm long.


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## winstonamc (Mar 19, 2007)

Anyone know if sluggo works for these guys? They are taking over my crested gecko tank


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## Luvsumlizards (Aug 16, 2021)

Tbk


swampfoxjjr said:


> I prefer to place their heads on the heads of pins and display them prominently in the viv as a warning to the others...


This comment cracked me up and made me feel less stressed about the millipede infestation in my tank right now...thanks 😊


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## davecalk (Dec 17, 2008)

Ed is right. CO2 bombing is has been the solution that I have found worked the best.

Article about CO2 Bombing


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