Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, I recently bought a culture and supplies from eds fly meat to start some of my own ff cultures. I had read that the yeast is what the flies eat - so I figured I'd start my culture off right and sprinkled some yeast on top of the media. As it turns out, the yeast actually helps disolve the media so the flies can consume it better (this is what I was recently told anyways). The media is almost a liquid - but I am getting lots of larva. There is also a small ammount of mold. Can I still use the flies that devolope to start a new culture? Or are they shot due to the mold. I'd really not buy another culture if I don't have to spend the money.

Thanks in advance and sorry about the long post,
Erik

I am no expert, but I think the yeast helps the fermentaion process (turning the substrate into sugars, which is what the fruitfly larva eat). Fruitflies will lay eggs on the surface of rotting (fermenting) fruits.

Mold happens... I think I don't use enough distilled vinager in my mediums so I end up with mold within a few days. If you have enough fruit flies in the container, the larvas will mix things up making the mold disappear with time. I think there is one type of bad mold called "black death" or something like that where you probably don't want to use those fruitflies to establish other colonies. Also, colonies with mites are best gotten rid of since they affect production.

I notice that the larva eating makes the medium a bit liquidy. But the excelsior (spelling??) I use helps keep the medium stiff enough where I can tilt the container without seeing liquid and medium sliding around. Maybe the medium was made too wet... But too dry is not good either.
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- Juli
Polliwog Design - Under construction.

Your are fine I would bet, I have found that the amount of water used can be different by location and time of year, so its not an exact thing. For example, suggested is equal water to medium for most. I use 1/3 cup medium and 1/2 cup water:vinegar.
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Kyle
www.kylesphotos.com
1.2.0 D. leucomelas
0.0.2 D. azureus
1.0.1 D. imitators

I too was going to ask the question about the water being almost liquid like. I didnt notice it in the first few weeks i made cultures. But i did notice it yesterday. Im not sure if its a weather change or not. but i made a few more cultures today with less water.

aj
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Click Here to see my vivarium and steps on how to make a basic vivarium UPDATED 9.10.03 Now complete! Blue Sipaliwini Darts need to get old enough to go the big tank now!

kungfu28181: My god. You are insane. -Mon Jun 30 21:41:05

They will all get liquid a little when the larva starts working, and eating it. Then after a few days it goes down a bit. But should not be sloshy, or loose enough to fall out when feeding. I've had more of the opposite problem with mine drying out.
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Kyle
www.kylesphotos.com
1.2.0 D. leucomelas
0.0.2 D. azureus
1.0.1 D. imitators

Kyle, I think you use the same ff media mix that I do (I need to dig around for my recipe somewhere, because I'm now about out after 6 months). I actually boil my water so that: 1)bacteria won't be a big problem, 2)the yeast bloom will occur more rapidly, and 3) the media is uniformly hydrated (kinda like making oatmeal).

I take the boiling water and pour it with an equal part of distilled vinegar. I add a little more than 1/3 cup of media (along with some paprika), then add almost 3/4 cup of my water/vinegar solution and swirl the mix a few times until the potato flakes "sponge up" and the mix sets. I let it cool (with the top on loosely to prevent any airborne mold spores from contaminating the media--it's amazing how many there are in the air, as I found in my mycology classes) for about 5 minutes on a cool marble surface, then add 3 folded coffee filters for the flies to congregate on and pour in the flies. I never have mold problems.

The mix does get a bit soupy when the larvae first start to reach their critical mass, but I've never had them so soupy that it would pour out. It definitely stiffens up before the first big hatch of hydei.

That's just my experience. I hope it helped someone out.
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Homer W. Faucett III, esq.
Purveyor of Trivialities and Fine Nonsense

The boiling might be overkill, I have read that most people boil mediums with fruit in them to kill off any wild FF's.
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Kyle
www.kylesphotos.com
1.2.0 D. leucomelas
0.0.2 D. azureus
1.0.1 D. imitators

I've tried it without boiling, and I don't think the media is as uniformly wetted. Additionally, it seems like I see the larvae a few days earlier. If other people have luck the other way, great. However, this works best for me.
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Homer W. Faucett III, esq.
Purveyor of Trivialities and Fine Nonsense

np
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Matt

N/p