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I've had the strangest thing happen and I can't figure it out. A few weeks ago I noticed fruit flies around my house. They were coming from my cricket cage. I threw out the remaining crickets, cleaned the cricket cage thoroughly and started from scratch. A few days later they were back, so I threw out the whole thing and bought a new critter keeper and really started from scratch. They're back!!! The only thing that the old and new cages have in common is the cricket food. Is there a possibility that there are fruit fly eggs in it. It's flukers cricket food and I've had it awhile. I'm going to throw that out too and get the orange cube complete cricket food. BTW, I got crickets from different places so it's not the supplier. Has anyone else had this problem?
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0.1 Lampropeltis Getula Floridana
1.0 Elaphe Guttata Slowinskii

I have the same problem. It's a time of year thing. I also see them attracted to the fluorescent lights in my enclosures. I live in NJ and remember it from years past. Personally I think the flies are attracted to the fluorescent tubes because the night comes earlier and it is dark outside before the lights go out. Then they fly around and find the cricket cage.

Really!? It just seems like there are so many of them in with the crickets that they must be originating there. It's been so hot here that I still have the doors closed and AC on and I don't keep anything out on kitchen counters that would attract them. But I guess they're not doing any harm to my pets so I'll just wait 'til the weather changes and hopefully they'll go away. Is that what you did?
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0.1 Lampropeltis Getula Floridana
1.0 Elaphe Guttata Slowinskii

I get fruit flys in my house or some area at least once a year.... and I am neat freak. They are hardy, reproduce on nearly anything and have a VERY quick reproductive cycle. They seem to end up in my tarantulas cages more than anything else... the remedy? Throw a tiny jumping spider in there =)

Make sure to clean out the garbage disposal, check the back of all your cabenets for old food and check the bottoms of your garbage cans. They love all those places...

I guess I wouldn't say there are "so many" but there are some. I go through 5,000 crickets a week right now and so the crickets are in the kricket keepers maybe for only a day or so but they are still around. Right now I have my A/C on but in the past I have had the windows open and I think they get through any crack they can find around the screens or something. Soon I expect we'll have the first frost here and no more will come in. Then the problem seems to go away.

>>I've had the strangest thing happen and I can't figure it out. A few weeks ago I noticed fruit flies around my house. They were coming from my cricket cage. I threw out the remaining crickets, cleaned the cricket cage thoroughly and started from scratch. A few days later they were back, so I threw out the whole thing and bought a new critter keeper and really started from scratch. They're back!!! The only thing that the old and new cages have in common is the cricket food. Is there a possibility that there are fruit fly eggs in it. It's flukers cricket food and I've had it awhile. I'm going to throw that out too and get the orange cube complete cricket food. BTW, I got crickets from different places so it's not the supplier. Has anyone else had this problem?
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Those are Not fruit flies. Those are phorid flies and they are bad news.. spread diseases. When crickets are set up with too much moisture the flies will take over.. they feed on anything - including the crickets.
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PHWyvern

PHWyvern is right.

To tell for sure...when they land on something do they move around in a jerky motion....dart one way and then change directions and dart again?

When you put slowly your finger near one does it fly away or move away from you (walking)?

Sorry but it's unlikely that they're phorid flies. Their life cycle is too long.

http://www.pestproducts.com/phoridfly.htm

Regular maintenance and cleanliness would preclude this pest from ever being a problem.

In my case, maximum time crickets are kept is 8 - 9 days. Apples are used for moisture along with sponges but are changed every 2 days. My bulk bins have a fine screen and I have never seen bugs inside. The problem is the smaller kritter keepers with the plastic tops and the tubes.

These containers are emptied and cleaned every 2 days. I fall back on the bugs coming in from the outside as night temps. cool heading into fall.

Oh and for the record any bug can spread disease, including crickets.

THe prime source of fruit flies are from fruit you buy at a grocery store. I always see some flying around the produce section, some places or times of the week are worse than others. So any fruit brought into the house can have fruit flies or their eggs on them. Wash all fruit or store in the fridge.

Also keep in mind as we head into fall, for those areas that have good falls and winters, is prime time for all these bugs and flies to find their way inside where its warm.
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PHLdyPayne