need help asap... dead flies

[awelcome]

So I am pretty sure my original two cultures are crashing if not already there.... my started cultures didn't seem ready though so I had DH pick up a culture at the pet store tonight. He got one that had a lot of flies already in it (I hoped he'd get one a little newer but oh well) so I was going to start another new culture from that one at least. So I set it all up, same as last time, and when I poured the flies into the new container and got the lid on (bit of chaos actually because it was so full they were getting everywhere so I had to clean those up too) and looked at the bottom most of them were laying there dead on the media! I don't know if it was too hot for them (which it was the same if not actually cooler than last time I made it) or if they were dead in the main container and I just happened to dump the dead ones out, but now I am not sure what to do. There are a bunch moving around, but there are a lot of dead ones. Are they going to cause harm to the culture being in there? Should I try to add a few more live ones now, or at least once it cools even more in case that was the issue?

[flybyferns]

I wait 24 hours after mixing the media before I add the flies.

You might get more already growing cultures... Yikes , you don't want to run out.

Also, just in case you have mines ...separate the cultures; meaning don't keep them next to each other.
Any that are next to each other should be far enough apart so the lids never touch

The best time to make a new couture from an old culture is at about 10- 14 days.
D. Hydei may need the 2 weeks.

After a month - do not use them to make new ones as this will really increase the risk of mites.

The idea is to- get a rhythm- never be with out a culture that has flies ready to lay eggs ( 10-2 weeks) to be used for the next one.

When transferring for feeding and for moving into a new culture container...tap them into a plastic bag 1st.
I use a qt. baggie ( the non-zip kind)

This method works great for feeding... you can just add the sup. to coat/dust the flies while in the plastic bag

And NEVER mix species in one culture. They will take flight

I'v done this merely by tapping more that one species from a culture container into the same bag.
All you need is ONE to sneak back in.

Oh , something we don't often talk about
Buy a spare vacuum when you can !!!! Your gonna need it.
Change the bag or empty frequently so it does not attract mites.

[Mentat]

Lynn already gave you good advice. Myself would let media cool down to room temp before adding the yeast (live, not brewers) grains (6-10); then the excelsior; and finally the flies.

I do a variation of Lynn's method and use an empty 32oz container to pour flies into it; ensure got like 50 for D. melanogaster or 100 for D. hydei; and then pour them from there into new culture. Label container and you are done. Good luck !

[DigitalPunk]

If your order from NeHerp hasn't shipped call them and add a culture or 2 of the Melanogaster flies to the box. Keep those to cultures separate from the others when they arrive. You can get one from them that is already producing flies and one that is freshly started. Next week you can make a new culture form the producing culture and go from there.

When the 2 new ones arrive I would check to make sure there are enough flies in the one and then throw the cultures with dead flies in them away (for fear of mites) If the ones you already setup are doing good (which the pictures you posted a couple days ago looked good) than keep them, but keep them separate from the new cultures.

You just don't want to run out of flies. That would be bad.

[awelcome]

I went ahead after not hearing from anyone last night and added a few more once it cooled some and they were fine, but of course there are still a bunch of dead ones at the bottom now. I think it was just too hot. I keep the cultures I am making on a sheet of mite paper, and the ones I bought in a box that I lined with mite paper as well (not together) and none touching. Because of space issues I do have to keep the springtail container near them also on the mite paper, but again not touching.

I definitely have seen mites on the lids of the store-bought cultures, how bad is that? Is it just a nuisance, or can it cause a problem? I am not going to be able to add flies to my current order because I just can't up the shipping to express right now (need to reign in some spending) and I don't want to take the chance on regular shipping for them in this heat. If I HAVE to buy another culture from the store I will, and running out won't be an issue since it's a quick drive to the pet store.

Next time I make a culture I will definitely let it cool down before adding the yeast and finishing them up. I guess I must have just gotten lucky the first two times that the flies didn't drop to the bottom. I do pour them into a cup first and then into either the culture, or for feeding. It's the way I have always done it.

[awelcome]

well that was weird... I fed from that new purchased culture this morning... wow those suckers scattered FAST! I am used to them pretty much staying where I put them and some scattering. These guys hit the ground running and running fast. Poor frog got her workout this morning chasing them down and managed to get most of them I think, but this could pose a problem for getting too many in the enclosure that she doesn't find eventually.... though I guess on the flipside it would give her things to hunt throughout the day instead of her eating them all so quickly. They also seem ever so slightly larger.... but I had thought I noticed the flies getting slightly smaller towards the end of the other cultures' lives.

On another note though... this culture has a sort of sour smell, that I noticed when opening it. It doesn't smell "bad" or anything, just like maybe I am getting a sense of the media in there, which I hadn't before in the others. I tried to smell the older cultures to see if the same and it's at least very similar but the others do smell more old and gross. The smell reminds me of like pickled baby corns.... do you think that smell is just because of whatever they use for media? All three cultures are from the same company, same store.

[awelcome]

just hoping someone can answer the two previous posts/questions I posted on this thread... The smell of the culture is QUITE strong (now that I am getting my sense of smell back) and I can smell it before I even open the container and it smells up the room once I do. It still doesn't smell super rancid or anything to me, unless that pickling type smell IS a sign of rancid/fungus or something in cultures. I am starting to worry about feeding them to her without hearing back from anyone, but it's the only producing culture I have at the moment. I don't know if it's a related thing, but today as she was eating she like tripped a couple times in a row, and I don't know... a paranoid part of me worried it was somehow related to the flies or something causing her to get sick.

[deranged chipmunk]

Fruit fly cultures smell bad. I don't think I ever had one that didn't. Even my homemade ones smell nasty.


Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world ~ Nelson Mandela

[awelcome]

glad to hear that... sort of lol. The only reason I was concerned is because the other two did not have this intense smell.... though if I sniff them now and can smell past the "old" gross smell I think it smells similar.