# hairy imposters in cricket tubs



## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

can anyone tell me what these hairy wee beasties are in the cricket tubs, and if they can be fed to the lizards. i havent fed them many but they seem to love them. i really dont think they are anything dangerous to the lizards as then there would be warnings on the labels.


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## MP reptiles (Dec 30, 2010)

pics i dont know what you are on about sorry?


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## MAB90 (Dec 27, 2010)

Im sure they are put in to eat any dead crickets and keep them abit tidy, but not too sure.


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## imitebmike (Jun 22, 2008)

Dermestid larvae? they should be fine, but the furriness may irritate some reps


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## Junior13reptilez (Oct 17, 2010)

They eat the dead crickets, and have been known to eat the crickets alive if there are no dead ones:gasp:


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## kezzbag (Jan 16, 2011)

Junior13reptilez said:


> They eat the dead crickets, and have been known to eat the crickets alive if there are no dead ones:gasp:


 
nice!....i think i will be keeping away from those lol


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## SleepyD (Feb 13, 2008)

jimnamman said:


> can anyone tell me what these hairy wee beasties are in the cricket tubs, and if they can be fed to the lizards. i havent fed them many but they seem to love them. i really dont think they are anything dangerous to the lizards as then there would be warnings on the labels.


they're dermestid beetle larvae ~ they're a major pest and livefood producers would on the whole love to get rid of them as they not only eat dead crickets etc but will also eat living ones and can dessimate cricket colonies... they can also become a real pest in the home. None of my reps will eat them and if I find any they're squished and flushed


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## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

mines dont really get a chance, to eat each other i mean, as soon as i get them home the crickets have there own small tank/viv. and fresh salad and veg cleaned all the time and kept fresh, i have seen the small hairy things near to the dead crckets, but thats a good thing i think.
does any one know what they pupate.? (thnk thats what the process is called .?)


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## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

Junior13reptilez said:


> They eat the dead crickets, and have been known to eat the crickets alive if there are no dead ones:gasp:


even the crickets eat the other dead crickets though or even live ones if there is no fresh food for them. 

they are cannibalistic.


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## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

they eat the egg crates too, and your furniture and clothes etc. they also fly when they turn into beetles. 
any i spot in mine get picked out, put in tub and fed to the chicken or put on the fire. :whistling2:


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## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

if they are that much of a nightmare, ( and i hope they are not because i dropped one or 2 this morning oops on the carpet ),
why do they not come with a warning sticker, i mean even word of mouth, between me and my OH we have kept herps for around 9 years, and never been warned about these from pet shops or anybody. and if they were not helping with the clean up of dead crickets in tubs then they would be a lot dirtier or they would smell more than they do, (would they not)
so are they not helpers in the tubs.?
helping in the clean up process.?


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## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

i think they do help to clean up dead ones if they are in small numbers. but in larger numbers the ycan eat the whole colony. 

if i notice them i take them out. the chickens love them.

the beardies liked them when they were smaller too. went off them when they grew.


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## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

Dee_Williams said:


> i think they do help to clean up dead ones if they are in small numbers. but in larger numbers the ycan eat the whole colony.
> 
> if i notice them i take them out. the chickens love them.
> 
> the beardies liked them when they were smaller too. went off them when they grew.


yeah im only talking hear about the small amount you get inside of the crcket tubs, (maybe 5 or 6) a tub.
it was really funny earlier i shared out the crickets equally and then gave them all (2 beardies and plated lizard) the wee hairy beasties, well the beardies are well lets just say nothing lasts very long inside there viv, but the plated just takes his time checks round about him then caries on just taking his time, making them last him, and the 2 beardies started head bobbing and waving at him was quite funny.


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## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

aww the yare so cute.

i would think 5 or 6 is quite a few. when they hatch out they mate like mad.


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## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

yeah 5 or 6 would be a lot in the one tub.
i get few at a time and empty them into there own small tank/viv
when i was dealing out the last of the crickets this morning i found about 5 or 6 in the bottom of there tank, so thats maybe 2 hairy beasties each a tub.


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## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

getthem fed to the lizards as soon as you find them if they are happy esating them.

like i said, mine ate them when they were younger but went off them.


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## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

Dee_Williams said:


> aww the yare so cute.


should have seen it , it was almost as if the plated lizard was actually teasing them or teaching them a lesson for being so greedy with theres hahaha


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## Dee_Williams (Aug 15, 2010)

"don't bolt your food kids." :lol2:


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## davemoths (Nov 19, 2008)

jimnamman said:


> can anyone tell me what these hairy wee beasties are in the cricket tubs, and if they can be fed to the lizards. i havent fed them many but they seem to love them. i really dont think they are anything dangerous to the lizards as then there would be warnings on the labels.


These are the larvae of a beetle called Dermestes. They feed on dead animals and love dead crickets. If there is no food then they will attack crickets that are moulting but they are not active hunters. Unless you make a habit of leaving dead animal material around the house then they are not an issue but will eat things like dried animal ornaments and stuffed animals. They are used by museums and the like to clean up skeletons prior to taxidermy.

They are a pest in insect colonies and all of the insect producers battle constantly to wipe them out. Unfortunately the life cycle is shorter than that of a cricket so it makes them very hard to control, they certainly are not added to cricket tubs deliberately! They need somewhere slightly damp and quiet to pupate so are rarely seen to pupate in cricket tubs but may do in a viv where they will emerge as a beetle.

Hope this helps.

Dave

Some reptiles eat them and some don't, it just seems to depend on the animal.


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## jimnamman (Apr 28, 2011)

davemoths said:


> These are the larvae of a beetle called Dermestes. They feed on dead animals and love dead crickets. If there is no food then they will attack crickets that are moulting but they are not active hunters. Unless you make a habit of leaving dead animal material around the house then they are not an issue but will eat things like dried animal ornaments and stuffed animals. They are used by museums and the like to clean up skeletons prior to taxidermy.
> 
> They are a pest in insect colonies and all of the insect producers battle constantly to wipe them out. Unfortunately the life cycle is shorter than that of a cricket so it makes them very hard to control, they certainly are not added to cricket tubs deliberately! They need somewhere slightly damp and quiet to pupate so are rarely seen to pupate in cricket tubs but may do in a viv where they will emerge as a beetle.
> 
> ...


thank you very much Dave yip thats all i was looking for, all the info that i need, my lot just love them, i was just a bit worried that they maybe doing them more harm than good, so after your response i will continue to feed them to the dinosaurs, as they do go kinda wild for them. thanks again :2thumb:


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## peterf (Jul 27, 2007)

They will also eat live insects and your correct- they are major pests in insect colonies.
Every livefood producer has to work very hard not to to be overcome by these prolific insects. With the density they achieve very quickly they can wipe out an entire culture bin of crickets very quickly and do not just eat dead matter.
There are many posts on this matter but the "clean up" urban myth still persists!
Not many animals will eat them and I would be cautious of them infesting your home and eating aeverything they find!


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## dinostore (Feb 23, 2011)

jimnamman said:


> does any one know what they pupate *IN TO*.?


beetles....bout half the size of meal worm beetles

i dont mind my reps eating an odd one or two if they got loose, but i wouldnt feed them all what came in the tub
as ''your reps eat what the bugs eat'' and these bug eat anything nasty.... yes they will eat live crix but only as a last resort, before that they will eat all the dead ones all the shed and and all the poo and all the decaying and rotting veg first....so they're not that healthy


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## peterf (Jul 27, 2007)

dinostore said:


> yes they will eat live crix but only as a last resort


Wish you would tell the dermestes we battle with every day this fact!!


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

dinostore said:


> yes they will eat live crix but only as a last resort





peterf said:


> Wish you would tell the dermestes we battle with every day this fact!!


i thought he was right and they only eat the dead and decaying...

_*Dermestes*_ is a genus of larder beetles in the family Dermestidae. Both the adult beetles and the larvae feed on dry dead animals and vegetable material. _Dermestes_, especially its larvae, can seriously damage natural animal fibers, foodstuff, furnishing and zoological collections. Larder beetles are common throughout the world and are a serious pest in some places.

they are scavengers that feed on dry animal or plant material such as skin or pollen, animal hair, feathers, dead insects and natural fibers


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## peterf (Jul 27, 2007)

Dermestes are a major problem with commercial insect producers, of which I am one!
They have a very short life cycle and if this cycle is not interrupted by some husbandry techniques then a large quantity of dermestes larvae will eat live crickets quicker than you can get them out.
Yes they are scavengers and will strip dead animals bare of flesh very quickly but believe me when I tell you that your harvest of crcikets will be dessimated if the colony has a large number of dermestes.
I am happy for you to quote Wikepedia or wherever that data came from but I can tell you from 25 years of breeding live insects on a huge commercial scale that they will eat LIVE crickets!


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

peterf said:


> I can tell you from 25 years of breeding live insects on a huge commercial scale that they will eat LIVE crickets!


but we're talking bout 5-6

not 500 or 600

and i didnt say they didnt EAT LIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:whistling2:


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## peterf (Jul 27, 2007)

ch4dg said:


> i thought he was right and they only eat the dead and decaying...


and i didnt say they didnt EAT LIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:whistling2: 

Sorry but I sometimes wonder why I contribute.....


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## ch4dg (Jul 24, 2008)

peterf said:


> and i didnt say they didnt EAT LIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:whistling2:
> 
> Sorry but I sometimes wonder why I contribute.....


i said 'i thought they only ate dead or decaying', but i didnt say 'they dont eat live'

i just put ''i thought he was right'' NOT i know he's right as that is what petstores also say to customers(myself included) as not to worry bout it 'they're put in there to eat the poo'
and also most info on the net (yes including wiki) say it eat the dead and decaying so you cant blame people for thinking that.

but then your reply came across as an ''i'm better than you, i know more than you, i've got 25 yrs of experiance playing with bugs so i'm god and my word is gospel'' approach

dont worry bout it tbh i dont really care so nuff said
i believe you and THEY DO EAT LIVE CRIX


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