[ynotnad]

I was hoping to get a little help on keeping my feeder crickets alive for a longer period of time. Currently I have a 5gal screened top tank (16"x10.5"x8.25") that I am keeping the crickets in. Inside the tank I have 8 empty paper towel rolls, cork bark pieces, a dish for gutload and a dish for water gel crystals. I also throw in apple and orange pieces. I usually pick up 2 to 3 dozen of cricket at a time. The problem I am having is within 3 to 4 days I am loosing between 8 to 13 crickets. The room the crickets are stored in is between 77 and 81 so the temp should not be an issue. There is no substrate inside the tank just reptile liner on the bottom to make cleaning easier.

I would like to be able to order a larger amount of crikets (I can get 100 for $8). I would need to keep them in a larger container, I was thinking one of those clear plastic 20 or 30gal high containers might work perfect since the sides are over 18" tall. I would just make a steel mesh top to place on top.

But before I try this I wanted to find out if there is something I am doing wrong or something I am missing or how other people are keeping their feeder crickets for extended periods of time.

Thank you in advance

Tony

 

[kickedinthevader]

what are you using the crickets for? PDF feeding? Or other animals?

 

[ynotnad]

Sorry should have put that in there, they are for feeding my Dumpies.

 

[kickedinthevader]

personally I'd lose the crickets, they climb, jump, die REALLY fast, no matter the setup and the smell TERRIBLE. Shoot me a PM, I need to thin down my dubia colony. These are MUCH better for any animal, in addition to they don't climb, jump, or smell.

 

[oddlot]

I use a 10 gallon fish tank.I buy a box of 1000 and keep them alive as long as I need them.They breed in the tank and produce 1000's of pinheads.I use chicken layer pellets for the high calcium and run it through a coffee grinder to make it a fine powder.I would lose the expensive water crystals and use zuccini or squash .They will hydrate and get nutrients from it.I use paper eggcrates in the tank which the crickets cling to and just bang them into the feeder cup.I don't use any substrate.

If you want to breed for pinheads you get a small 8oz cup and fill it with coco fiber.Make sure to keep it damp but not wet.The crickets will deposit eggs by the tens and hundreds.leave the cup in for about ten days then put it in a separate container.I use critter keepers with stockings stretched over the tops to allow good air circulation and keep the little buggers contained.

They are a very good staple as long as you don't mind the noise.I feed pinheads to all my dart frogs in rotation with the other feeders.Hopefully this helps.This process works very well for me.I had a hard time keeping them alive when I first started trying to raise them.

Lou

 

[Ed]

If you are getting adult crickets from the pet store, they may often be old adults passed thier breeding prime. This means that they are close to the end of thier life and will only last a short term.
If you are getting prewinged crickets and most/all of them die before they become adults then they are probably infected with the cricket virus and you should consider getting them in smaller numbers as once the virus is established in a location it appears to be hard to eradicate.

Ed

 

[ynotnad]

Thank you for all the replies I am going to buy crikets at a smaller amount as Ed stated and also enlarge the holding container.