# Glossy tiny bugs in springtail culture



## Zevil (Jun 2, 2018)

I saw lots of silvery glossing looking bugs in my springtail culture. They are as small as springtails, move as fast as springtails but when I disturb them, they don't jump. They just move away very quickly. Upon closer inspection, they have antennae, their body is a glossy silver with a bit of black colouring at the middle/back of their bodies, and has an oval shape whereas my white springtails have an elongated body. I also found them in various sizes, the smallest one is probably as small as the period at the end of this sentence. The biggest one is maybe 2mm long. A lot of them seems to gather on the mold of the decaying leaves.

What are they?


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## Entomologist210 (Apr 24, 2014)

They are likely also springtails. There are several different families of collembola and not all of them prefer to jump away.


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## Zevil (Jun 2, 2018)

Entomologist210 said:


> They are likely also springtails. There are several different families of collembola and not all of them prefer to jump away.


I got my culture from a friend and he does not have these silvery springtails. The only difference is I added a few dried Almond leaves I bought from a local fish store, meant for Bettas. Could these springtails come from those leaves? Maybe springtail eggs?


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## ldaniell (Apr 18, 2018)

I have these in my crested gecko vivarium among other weird bugs, which I think came in the substrate I purchased. They seem harmless and do a decent clean-up job, but I'm concerned that they will not allow for a healthy, "regular" springtail population to establish.


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## Zevil (Jun 2, 2018)

ldaniell said:


> I have these in my crested gecko vivarium among other weird bugs, which I think came in the substrate I purchased. They seem harmless and do a decent clean-up job, but I'm concerned that they will not allow for a healthy, "regular" springtail population to establish.


My silver springtails has already pushed my white springtails close to extinction. I seldom see the white ones anymore whereas the silver ones grew in enormous numbers.


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## thumbnail (Sep 18, 2005)

Raised a native springtail collected from my garden in Ga. It is silver almost mirror like back on this springtail. They produce quicker then my temperate whites or tropicals. I have had success with them to the extreme you could say. Since I have cultured them ten plus years ago they are in every plant in the house and they also made for a good discovery. When I used to breed snakes they got into my incubator to my surprise I found them cleaning anything resembling molds or even fungus off the eggs and the perlite. 

My first worry was they would consume every egg in sight, but through the years they have only consumed dud eggs and any that fail to survive. I breed only miniature monitors now and you don't have to believe me but I put enough trust with thousands of dollars worth of eggs each cycle. If I still bred snakes i would use them again. I think the only downside is the resilience in even very low humidity conditions meaning any container you have set up in fairly close proximity with the right conditions they get to it. My isopods are sorted and kept on on diatomaceous earth inside another large bin. The same is done with all other types of springtails. 

They are perfect for varying conditions from fluctuating low and high temps. to humidity swings. I have had previous setups that have gone through near total desiccation only to reuse soil for repotting a plant. Once enough moisture builds up they rebuild quickly. They can't take freezing or total dry out, but those are two silver bullets that have worked. I would not worry about them but be warned whatever culture they pop up in almost every time the silver's win.


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## Zevil (Jun 2, 2018)

You are right. They killed off my tropical white culture but as long as they can do the same job, I don't mind. Will they outcompete the isopods too?


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## thumbnail (Sep 18, 2005)

No they do not out compete the isopods well atleast not my CR dwarf purples or dwarf whites, but those cultures they invaded are no where near my other isopod cultures. The only reason for that is i sell excess isopods and I do not know who would prefer the mix. I will say though those few cultures i have of isopods with springs never have yeast last overnight.


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## Zevil (Jun 2, 2018)

Thanks. Glad to know as I have a colony of dwarf whites and a colony of dwarf greys, both colonies probably have a population in the 200s. The silver springtails have invaded those.

Btw do silver springtails eat fungus gnat eggs or mite eggs?


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