# Worms/maggots in my springtail culture?



## KMcL (Mar 8, 2018)

I just noticed what appears to be worms or maggots in 2 of my springtail cultures. I just found 2 or 3. They are grayish white and approx. 1/4 inch long. The cultures are completely sealed. Any ideas what they could be?


----------



## Louis (Apr 23, 2014)

Quite likely to be fungus gnat larvae.


----------



## DebE (Mar 10, 2018)

I will be culturing springtails in a few months and I am new  So if you find those in there do you have to throw out the culture? This is why it is suggested to have several going at one time? TIA Deb


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

DebE said:


> I will be culturing springtails in a few months and I am new  So if you find those in there do you have to throw out the culture? This is why it is suggested to have several going at one time? TIA Deb


Float and blow.
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/fo...clean-your-mite-contaminated-springtails.html

They could also be phorid fly larvae.

http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/food-feeding/66991-how-culture-isopods-woodlice-springtails.html


----------



## KMcL (Mar 8, 2018)

Heres a picture of one


----------



## T&F (Aug 24, 2016)

I had phorid (humpback) fly larvae mixed in with my springtails, too. I ended up taking them out, putting them into their own container, and then starting a phorid fly culture so that I could harvest future larvae and then feed them to my varaderos. The culture worked fine, and the varaderos ate phorid fly larvae, as a snack, periodically over the next several months.


----------



## KMcL (Mar 8, 2018)

Very nice! Ill try it...


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

T&F said:


> I had phorid (humpback) fly larvae mixed in with my springtails, too. I ended up taking them out, putting them into their own container, and then starting a phorid fly culture so that I could harvest future larvae and then feed them to my varaderos. The culture worked fine, and the varaderos ate phorid fly larvae, as a snack, periodically over the next several months.


I would be very careful with that, and take any extra precautions to avoid cross-culture contamination. Phorid flies are very invasive, and their tiny bodies can get in and out of places that fruit flies and fungus gnats can not. They tend to find their way into other cultures pretty easily. A number of years back a phorid fly invasion shut down my microfauna distributing for 2 or 3 months. They got into every smaller culture I had. They can walk through a tiny pin hole incredibly easily. I witnessed them coming and going through breather pinholes, and I kid you not, it doesn't even slow them down. They look too big to fit, but scurry through in a split second. All of my cultures set to distribute, were destroyed. Only my .3 micron filter protected cultures stayed clean.

In addition, do a search for phorid fly bite, and you'll see old DB threads where people state that phorid flies are known to eat eggs. That, in and of itself, was enough to convince me to take every effort to eradicate them. 
Finally, Ed has posted that phorid flies are known to attack open wounds, on frogs, other animals, and humans. As I understand Ed's warnings, a minor scratch could become a serious injury.
Please, until you eradicate them, no microfauna swapping. They should really be considered nasty enough that you should be concerned about spreading the issue to other people.


----------



## T&F (Aug 24, 2016)

Yes, I should have mentioned that I only allowed the adults to breed and lay eggs. After I noticed larvae, I opened their culture outside, whereupon they were met with subfreezing temperatures and died shortly after. The adults are nasty, and I would recommend keeping them alive only long enough to perpetuate the culture.


----------



## KMcL (Mar 8, 2018)

I think ill get rid of the cultures and start from scratch. Thanks for the info!


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

KMcL said:


> I think ill get rid of the cultures and start from scratch. Thanks for the info!


Float and blow will give you 100% cleanliness, quite easily, with either phorid flies or fungus gnats. The larvae are big enough that they can't be blown in accidently.


----------

