Gnat traps in the vivarium...

[awelcome]

I have seen mention of people using some sort of trap in the viv to get those pesky fungus gnats.... I was hoping you could explain that a bit to me. What are they made of, where do you place it so it's not a problem for the frog as well, etc. Thanks.

Tonight I think I counted like 4-5 in there, and I am sure there are plenty more coming since I can see loads of those dang larvae all over the log where I can't quite get them and neither can Zeus. I see him eat them off leaves when he can and whatnot but they hide too well in the grooves of the wood for him to get most of them. And I can't for the life of me catch most of the gnats... I finally squished one after chasing the dang thing around in there. I sprayed them down and walked away so I wouldn't obsess about it anymore lol.

[LilyPad]

I personally don't worry about them. They come and go. I put traps on top of my vivs. Right now I have 2 different types going to see which works better. One is a plastic water bottle with the top cut off, inverted, and secured with duct tape. I have apple cider vinegar and honey inside it. The other is a dish covered in plastic wrap with holes poked in it, inside it is apple cider vinegar and a drop of dish soap. The plastic wrap one seems to be working a bit better. I seem to get an infestation every time I bring a new plant in the house, no matter how many times I rinse it outside before bringing it in. They always disappear after a bit though.

[ColleenT]

don't the frogs grab them?

[LilyPad]

My frogs ignore them, they are too small for them to care. Smaller frogs would probably go after them.

[awelcome]

So you put them IN or OUT of the viv? Sorry I am not quite sure I am getting this.

I have seen my frog look after them when they fly by him, but honestly they stay high up and move SO fast I haven't seen him catch one yet. That is not to say he won't at least catch some.... I just don't want them to start taking over. If it remains as a few I likely won't bother with a trap, but I want to be prepared in case they do start overrunning the place. I don't want to open my viv and have them barreling out of there in droves.

[LilyPad]

I keep mine OUT of the viv. I set them on top. I would not want to see what kind of trouble my frogs could get in with a trap inside the viv LOL

[awelcome]

I am not sure they are getting out of my viv... at least not yet lol. I hadn't thought that far ahead. I was wondering if maybe there was some way to make one small enough but still functional that I could dangle from the screen top somehow.... that way the frog couldn't get in. I will think on it and if I think of something I will share it.

[flybyferns]

Use fly traps with caution....and never in the enclosure. Most have insecticide on them.

The "larvae on the log" ? Are you sure what you are seeing isn't springtails ? If so just leave them.

In the long-run, any extra feeder is a good thing. The more variety your frog has the better.

Is it possible the fruit flies are breeding in the tank?
If you have purchased more than one species of "flightless" fruit flies it is not impossible for them to interbreed in the enclosure.

Mixing their genes results in a fly that is no longer "flightless".
Woo-hoo....fun in PDF land !

[DigitalPunk]

Screen top? With a dart frog you should not have a screen top....

If you have glass on the top of the tank covering the original screen top you will want to change that out sooner rather than later. The screen will begin to rust and create a potentially bad situation for your frog. Also in your video your tank looks dry. What is the humidity in it. I don't know that I have ever seen one of my tanks at 90% humidity and all the glass nearly free of water. If your humidity is up where it needs to be you don't need a water bowl and could free that space up for your frog..

[awelcome]

Definitely not springtails or flies. I have seen springtails in there, and they look very different. And I have seen fly larvae (not in there) which are also very different. If I did ever put a trap inside it would be with a natural thing like vinegar or something to attract them, nothing hazardous.

As for the dry look, it was towards the end of a misting cycle (I do it in morning and evening typically), but my humidity stays around 90% for the most part, and even goes up to 94% occasionally. I assure you it's quite wet in there, I just don't spray the glass very much. During the day it does fog up though, but opening it helps it to clear pretty quickly, and I generally wipe the front one on occasion just so I can see.

Oh and screen top.... I have glass over it, and I know it might eventually rust, but it's not on my immediate to do list. I am just keeping a close eye on it for now and so far no signs of rusting any time soon. Probably because I don't spray it or anything... so it will take longer from the humidity alone.