Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have been noticing more and more fruit flies in my roach tank in the last few days. I have been trying to replace their fresh fruits and veggies ASAP, but the flies keep coming. Anyone have advice on how to get rid of them, and keep them out? And are they really hurting anything or not? I don't care either way. I still want them gone.
Thanks.

Use water crystals that you keep in a bowl and make sure no feces or food get mixed in. Keep the area around the water crystals very clean and dry. Fruits and veggies should only be offered in amounts that you know the roaches will consume within hours. Cut the fruits/veggies into small pieces and spread them around the cage for more surface area.

The fruit flies are drawn to your cage so they can lay eggs, since the moist conditions and food are a perfect place for maggots. Look for egg deposits stuck to the side of your cage or around the floor. They look like sesame seeds. Maggots look like, well, maggots.
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chickabowwow

I agree that the flies are seeking the moist areas for egg laying/growth... however, I've noticed that the flies also prefer the water crystals as much as they do fruit that has been allowed to sit out too long. I've long since stopped using fruit for the moisture source on roaches and limit them to just sliced up carrots and their dry food pellets.

My crickets now - I still have to use water crystals simply due to the number of the crickets, but with using chopped carrots as the primary moisture source and supplementing with a much smaller amount of water crystals (1 spoonful a day) it lessens the fly activity a lot. Anytime someone stupidly does the opposite (little carrots and lots of crystals), the flies just start scrambling around the cricket cage in a frenzy and within a few hours the crystals are contaiminated with rapidly hatching fly eggs.
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Wyvern

The Invert Collection:
* (1) Aphonopelma anax - Texas Tan
* (1) Avicularia geroldi - Brazilian Blue Pinktoe
* (1) Brachypelma auratum - Mexican Flameknee
* (1) Brachypelma emilia - Mexican Red-leg
* (1) Brachypelma smithi - Mexican Red-knee
* (1) Cyclosternum fasciatum - Costa Rican Tiger Rump
* (1) Eupalaestrus campestratus - Pink Zebra Beauty
* (2) Grammostola pulchra - Brazilian Blacks
* (1) Lasiodora parahybana - Brazilian Salmon Birdeater
* (1) Nhandu chromatus / Lasidora cristata - Brazilian Red & White (aka White Striped Birdeater)
* (1) Nhandu coloratovillosus - Brazilian Black & White
* (1) Theraphosa blondi - Goliath Bird Eater
* (1) Latrodectus variolus - Northern Widow w/egg sac
* (~12) Latrodectus variolus - Northern Widow spiderlings

The fruit flies generally go for the water crystals that have been contaminated with food or feces. If you leave a container of clean water crystal gel sitting out in the open, they go untouched by the fruit flies.
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chickabowwow

Thanks for the advice. I've started giving more carrots than fruit. And after looking closer, I saw larva in the water crystals too. Thank you for that info. I would have never noticed them in there. Wouldn't have thought to look. I have just been adding more without checking there. And in regard to Xelda's comment, the water crystals had no contamination and the fruit flies were still attracted to it.

If you'd been adding water crystal gel without checking, I doubt they were uncontaminated. Regularly cleaning the food and water area is the best way to keep fruit flies away. This is how I maintain my 30 colonies.
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chickabowwow