Micro crickets aarrgghh

[Clinton Hogben]

Hi all
I seem to have acquired a colony of micro crickets in my l para tank im assuming a female has laid eggs in the moist bit of substrata near the water bowl because i have no vegetation in the enclosure for them to live on
will they just die off from lack of food or do i need to get rid of them before they get big enough to annoy my spider?
aarrgghh how do i get rid of something the size of a pin head? i can only just see the little buggers never mind catch them Te He
could micro crickets annoy a 7.5 inch L para if she started to moult?

any advice

cheers

[Oli Dodds]

Dont take this as read, because i have no experiance of anything like this except mites with my roaches lol.
But i'd say, get the para out and change the substrate and make sure there are no crickets in it.
As far as i know about them affecting the spid moulting; think about it, loads of starving little crickets and an innocent moulting spid. It cant be a good scenario lol

[Colin D Wilson]

They will live for ages mate, crickets are able to survive on the least protienous food stuffs (even household wiring plastic insulation will keep them going for weeks).
I agree with Oli and change the substrate, if you have any small spiders you *could* transfer the substrate into another tub and rear the micros on for food if you wish.

[Oli Dodds]

you *could* transfer the substrate into another tub and rear the micros on for food if you wish.

Excellent idea!

[Tom Forman]

what a nightmare.

[James Box]

had it happen.
oddly, the micros were not that hard to scoop out of the dirt! they're harder to get out of a cricket tub.

[Peter Lacey]

I attracted lots by placing an open tub on its side full of vegetable matter, frequently emptying this into another cricket tub. It didnt clear them all but it was a good way of catching the majority and providing food for my slings \o/

[Clinton Hogben]

Cheers for your thoughts guys
lots of the little sods have commited suicide in the water bowl but the rest seem to be going strong
As you say it seems a good idea to change the substrata would it be OK to remove the top couple of inches as maxine L para is in a big tank about 30 x 15 inches to allow for growth ( potential monster spider) and i seem to recall it took a lot of substrata to fill it from scratch

now comes the fun bit she is going through a psyco flick hair at everything stage so removing her will be fun she has never been handled (well not since i got her 8 months ago) just left to her own devices

All the best

[Colin D Wilson]

Get her in a cricket tub and pop her in a warm dark place for an hour or two, she'll be ok like that and settle down.

I would imagin it will be ok to scrape the top layers off, the problem you have is if there's any further egg masses ready to hatch further down. probably best to nuke the whole lot bit by bit, if you're not too bothered about keeping the micros, and pop the original sub back in.

[Clinton Hogben]

Sorted
step 1 remove one very p'd off 7.5 inch L para avoiding clouds of urticating hairs thrown up at me whatever side i approach from, the cricket tub didn't work she is to strong/big so went for biscuit tin instead.
step 2 remove top two inches of substrata taking 95% of the pesky micro squatters with it
step 3 chase remaining micro squatters round the viv
step 4 get fed up with step 3 and raid the kitchen for a chefs blowtorch
step 5 incinerate every last thing lurking in the top layer of the substrata
( looked like a scene out of the vietnam war chasing anything living with a flamethrower and reducing it to ash)
step 6 wait for the burning peat moss to go out and the smoke to clear i just dare anything to be alive now haa
step 7 put another few inches of new substrata on top replace log and hide
step 8 reinstall one verrryy p'd of L para
step 9 discuss the downside of hanging upside down for hours from the roof of your viv with said L para
step 10 pat self on back for a job well done

Maxine is now back on terra firma and looking happy ( if a spider can look happy ) and all the micro squatters have gone to the great big cabbage in the sky.

just a minor niggle its amazing how many urticating hairs can remain in a tank after the spider has left, my arms now itch like hell after messing around in her tank for an hour

ho hum such is life

[Nicola Dolby]

I've had my crickets lay eggs in the tarantula tanks before and they hatched too. Myself I just leave them, if there's more than 12" x 12" square there's enough room for the spid and the crickets are not a bother. of course when they grow there's extra food for the spider!

[Clinton Hogben]

I've had my crickets lay eggs in the tarantula tanks before and they hatched too. Myself I just leave them, if there's more than 12" x 12" square there's enough room for the spid and the crickets are not a bother. of course when they grow there's extra food for the spider!

Hi Nicola
the problem is they are so small it would take ages for them to grow big enough for maxine to eat and i must of had about 50-100 of the little beggars in the viv
going by her normal routine maxine is due to moult over the next month or so and i can imagine 50+ crickets in with her at that time, not good news at all
but armageddon solved the problem

[Colin D Wilson]

Clint, that step by step actually made me laugh out loud, brilliant.

Colin

[Tom Forman]

I'm sure i have heard people talk about cricket traps before.

Any1 know how I could catch a stray cricket that is hiding behind a cubboard?

I need something simple and effective.

[James Box]

good one Clint LOL

Tom....house spiders are good at sorting that kind of thing out, depending on size, obviously.
if it's big and "singing"...stick something long down to prod it out, then either smash or grab the beggar.