# Soldier Fly Problem



## Keeferd (Mar 20, 2016)

Hello, I bought a bunch of extra small Phoenix Worms a while back for my Thumbs and now I have a pretty big problem. It seems several of the worms had escaped the feeding dish and now there are about 15 large Soldier flies swarming around the vivarium and there numbers seem to be increasing by the day. My Vivarium is a relatively small 18x18x24 Exo-Terra, and these flies are Way too big for my little thumbs to eat. I know they have no functional mouth parts and are harmless to the frogs, but this Vivarium is in my bedroom and I don't want these things escaping and buzzing around my room when I try to feed the frogs. Is there some sort of funnel trap or something I could make to capture them without harming the frogs?  Thanks in advance.


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## Drteeth (Sep 17, 2016)

You could try an insect aspirator from bioquip or Carolina. They are like vacuums to gently catch bugs. I use them to catch excess fruit flies that get out at feeding time.


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## cam1941 (Jan 16, 2014)

Phoenix worms for thumbs? That's pretty amazing, did you witness any of the frogs actually eating them? Wouldn't think that would be possible.

Adult soldier flies live 5-8 days so your problem won't last long. If you want you could let them out a few at a time and you wouldn't have any trouble swatting them as they aren't that agile in my experience.


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## Keeferd (Mar 20, 2016)

Hmmm yea I may try getting one of those mini-insect vacs. I never thought of that. I know they only live for 5-8 days, but they are mating like crazy and I'm afraid in a few weeks the problem will escalate 10 fold. When I 1st got them the worms were newly hatched and about the size of fruit flies. I saw one of my thumbs eat a few, but the rest escaped and burrowed into the substrate and became monsters.


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## OrangeD (Oct 8, 2015)

Bio-Quip is pretty awesome place. I bought my black light fixture there to collect insects. We observed beetles in AZ last summer.


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## Woodswalker (Dec 26, 2014)

It's too bad this is in a thumbnail tank. I wouldn't mind if one of my larger tanks had a self-sustaining population of these guys, unless, of course, there's a risk I'm not seeing at the moment.

Are you sure they're actually breeding, rather than that the loose larvae you placed in there are simply morphing? If they aren't actually laying eggs in there, the problem should solve itself as they die off.


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## Jermander (Mar 12, 2014)

Soldier flies can reproduce in vivarium conditions, but I have to imagine it is a rare occurrence and will probably be limited at best. The larvae have various appetites and although I have seen them eat wood shavings, they really seem prefer rotting produce.


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## Entomologist210 (Apr 24, 2014)

If it's really Stratiomyidae (soldier flies), then you have nothing to worry about so long as there are no flowers or other glucose sources for the adults. Like Culicidae (mosquitoes), they need a sugar meal before they can produce offspring. No clue how long it takes for them to starve though.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Entomologist210 said:


> If it's really Stratiomyidae (soldier flies), then you have nothing to worry about so long as there are no flowers or other glucose sources for the adults. Like Culicidae (mosquitoes), they need a sugar meal before they can produce offspring. No clue how long it takes for them to starve though.


 Hermetia illucens according to a number of sources, does not meed to be fed prior to egg deposition (and a number state that they do not have functional digestive organs) see https://ie.unc.edu/files/2016/03/bsfl_how-to_guide.pdf 



> Furthermore, they prevent houseflies and other insects from laying eggs in the material inhabited by BSFL. *The adults do not have digestive organs, relying on stores of body fat from the larval stage.* Their short life cycle makes them a reliable source of food for r


It is very unlikely that they will colonize the enclosure as the courtship of these insects requires sufficient room for a flight where the male captures the female (the smallest example was 27 cm x 27 cm x 27 cm) but other sources suggest a larger enclosure is needed. 
see Craig Sheppard, D., et al. "Rearing methods for the black soldier fly (Diptera: Stratiomyidae)." Journal of Medical Entomology 39.4 (2002): 695-698.

some comments 

Ed


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## Entomologist210 (Apr 24, 2014)

I guess that's assuming that particular species is involved. There's what? Two thousand soldier flies? I think maybe about eleven hundred species occuring in the US. Hey! Maybe you can sugar trap them? Use a bottle with some mesh that won't let out any flies that make it inside. I don't have my big book of Brachycera on me so I'm not sure if that sort of thing would work on them and I've only done work in Cyclorrapha. Worth a shot though since you probably can't use sticky traps.


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