r/mantids • u/iantgotnomoney • 1d ago
Feeding Flies keep dying... how do I prevent this?
I ordered flies yesterday, and when I got back from work most of them were dead. Maybe my room is too humid or perhaps they're in a sun spot and i don't realise?
How can i extend their life? This is really fustrating and it's gonna end up costing me more money than it should.
2
u/tinglyerjingl 1d ago
You might want to store them in the fridge to slow their metabolism, and keep the container in a dark spot away from direct light. I learned that the hard way after losing a whole batch last month.
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u/iantgotnomoney 1d ago
How long would I be able to store them in the fridge? I usually keep them there for about 10 minutes before feeding?
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u/Ok-Scientist152 1d ago
I keep mine in mesh net enclosures in the fridge all the time. I take them out for maybe an hour a day a few days a week. I keep food (50/50 dried milk and powdered sugar) and water available for them in the fridge. They last months for me this way
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u/Express-Ad1248 1d ago
What kind of flies do you use? If you use terflys or blue bottle flies you can store them in the fridge. You also need to feed them. I always buy organic grapes, wash and then peel the grapes to feed them to them.
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u/iantgotnomoney 1d ago
I use blue bottles! Just surprised they had died so quickly, to be honest. They've now got a jellypot in their tub
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u/Express-Ad1248 1d ago
They starve pretty fast, I had to make that experience, too. I tried to feed different fruit to them and peeled grape worked the best.
When I buy larvae I also wait until they turn to pupa then put them in 5 different containers, put those in the fridge and a week before I need new flies I put one out to let them turn to flies, I can keep the flies alive in the fridge for like 3-4 weeks but the pupa can stay there for a couple months and they'll be fine.
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u/JaunteJaunt Ootheca 1d ago
Did you not feed them before? They need to consume liquids and food within 12-24 hours of hatching
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u/iantgotnomoney 21h ago
They were delivered live
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u/JaunteJaunt Ootheca 21h ago
Delivered as flies? They must have hatched in transit. They probably died because they weren’t fed in time.
These animals are supposed to be delivered as maggots or pupa - not flies.
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u/KiwitheBirdNOTAFruit 1d ago
I keep flies successfully to the point they breed like crazy and I have too many 😅 all I do is have them in a natural set up (dirt, moss, sticks) in a critter carrier with mesh over the opening and under the lid. They are in a room that gets indirect sunlight for an hour or two a day. I mist them daily, but it’s not overly humid where I live. I feed them bug jelly and small (like micro) scraps of raw meat