# Springtails



## heatfreakk3 (Oct 15, 2008)

Okay so i am looking at springtails on joshesfrogs.com, and im not sure what to get. Should i get the temperate or tropical kind? I was thinking tropical, but im not sure. Also i was going to buy a seperate bag of the charcole, how do i like get cultures going in my tank? Also how do i feed out of the little container they are in? Just like poor some water out with them in it and re fill it with more water? I tried springtails once but wasnt too successful with them and they died, if you can help thanks.


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## McBobs (Apr 26, 2007)

I would go with the tropical springtails. No real reason, but that is what I've worked with before and am comfortable with them. 

Get the extra bag of charcoal, tupperware containers and clean water. Fill the tupperwares halfway up with charcoal, add water until you can start to see the water level rising through charcoal (about 1/2" below charcoal level) add springtails and a chunk of mushroom. Put the lid back on and your culture is done. 

To add springtails to the viv, you can add water to the culture until it is flooded and pour the springtails in and then topping water off as needed. OR, you can hold the culture inside the viv and blow across the top of the culture. If the culture has a lot of springtails in it, they will jump off the surface of the water/charcoal when scared and they blow right into the viv. 

To keep springs somewhat established in the viv, lots of leaf litter is all that is needed. Small frogs/thumbnails tend to pick through the springtails faster so you will need to add more at weekly intervals to ensure that populations are being well maintained.

-Matt


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

Yeah there's lots of ways of keeping them and feeding them out, here's just a couple of threads with stuff but you can find more:

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/food-feeding/47021-reason-charcoal-spring-cultures.html

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/beginner-discussion/46206-springtails-how.html


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## heatfreakk3 (Oct 15, 2008)

Thanks so should i just like buy a already made kit from joshes or something? You just said add springtails, where woul i get them? How many cultures of them should i have going?


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## heatfreakk3 (Oct 15, 2008)

Thanks for those two threads i read them and they helped a bunch. One thing i was wondering about the second one though, you said to be careful about the flooding method to one guy cuz you might empty too much out of the culture, how much do you empty out? I am afraid i might empty too much out, i think thats what happened to my old springtail culture.


ChrisK said:


> Yeah there's lots of ways of keeping them and feeding them out, here's just a couple of threads with stuff but you can find more:
> 
> http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/food-feeding/47021-reason-charcoal-spring-cultures.html
> 
> http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/beginner-discussion/46206-springtails-how.html


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

duplicate post?


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

3 or 4 going is a good idea, so you should buy like 3 or 4 so you can start out feeding from some of them and starting new cultures from the others, just do it by eye when you flood them out and make sure you're not pouring out more than like half of them. To start new cultures just make them look exactly like the original one, put a bunch of springtails in it, feed them (not too much food though, look through those threads about feeding them), then just leave the new cultures alone for a couple of weeks except for feeding them and adding water if you need to (if you're using charcoal)


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## heatfreakk3 (Oct 15, 2008)

Alright thanks a bunch man  you really know your stuff lol. Last time i had springtails i used like raw rice..but the rice ended up like molding and turning brown and stuff, i dont think that normal, but im not sure.


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## snooknfrogs (Sep 25, 2009)

Here's a great video I found on youtube from Josh himself...

YouTube - Springtail Movie BIG PICS

JP


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## heatfreakk3 (Oct 15, 2008)

Thanks, very helpful


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## winyfrog (May 30, 2009)

When using the flooding method, to seed my viv and/or start a new culture. Do I leave the water in the container? I assume no, how do I drain the water out without dumping out all of the springtails?


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