Hi, I got a leopard gecko a few months ago, and while mealworms are not expensive, I heard they are very easy to breed, so I thought I'd give it a shot for mostly free food supply, which is especially good as the pet store is inconvenient to get to for me

Anyway, I read the caresheet here on raising mealworms. My setup currently is 2 smallish rubbermaid containers. I have mealworms in one, then I move the pupae and beetles to a 2nd container. I'd probably eventually get some more and keep moving the beetles around. I finally had the eggs hatch as I see all sorts of tiny tiny mealworms roaming around the container. My problem now is mites. They're all over the containers. I originally had some problems with condensation in the containers, so after reading up on mites it's no wonder they are all over. I have since cut the middle out of the lids and replaced it with screening, so there is no more condensation build in the containers.

So far I've read that the only real way to get rid of mites is to ditch the whole colony and start over. I am moving houses this coming weekend so it seems like the perfect time to do it.

Any tips for preventing mite buildup for this next attempt? As I said I have solved the condensation problem I believe with the screening. I'll also be giving the containers and good solid wash before taking them to my new place. I also only use Bran bought from the grocery store for baking for the substrate. Think this will be enough to prevent it for the next go, or is there anything else I can do?

Are you 100% sure they are mites and not fruit fly larvae? What color are they?

__________________
My name is Liz
Do what's best for the animal, not what's best for you.

I am not 100% sure, I just assumed after looking up mealworms and found that mites were a common problem.

They are a light brown colour. They basically look like sawdust, if sawdust could crawl around....

hmmm, i have never had mites, but last I heard they were black, like little pepper flakes. But, fruit flies are white... so I dunno.

__________________
My name is Liz
Do what's best for the animal, not what's best for you.

If you clean everything out very well. You shouldn't get the mites back. If they are mites. I suspect they might be some type of insect though.

Check any potted plants you have in the house and see if there are any on them.

__________________
Mike
"Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time, and always start with the person nearest you." - Mother Teresa

From what your describing it sounds like you have common wood mites, keeping the boxes drier was the right way to go. They are harmless but very annoying to see. I had them off and on in my tarantulas caging. Their normally found near any wood so they are most likely in you house anyway in low numbers. And tend to use moist cages as a breeding ground, they normally aren't spotted until they reach high numbers in a cage.

__________________
http://www.ig-phelsuma.de/
http://dght.de

I agree, dry out your enclosure some. What I use is sterilites with vent holes cut in them and then I glue peices of the foam filter material used in window air conditioners over the holes. Good air exchange and keeps the critters out.
Also before I add my bran, I put it in the microwave for 4-5 minutes to zap anything that might be in there.
The one time I didn't do it I ended up with a nice crop of moths that flew out as soon as I opened the container!

__________________
Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

Thanks for the advice. The problem definitely entrenched itself when I was having condensation issues. I have smallish rubbermaid containers I use. I had a whole bunch of holes poked in the lids but I still found that no matter how many holes I added there would always get condensation, especially on humid days and in the beetle container. So finally I cut away the top and stapled left over screening that I had from when I made a lid for my gecko tank. Haven't seen a drop of condensation since. Hopefully between moving houses, cleaning the containers, having the mesh top, and starting fresh I should prevent them coming back.

I also tried to pick out the individual mealworms from my new batches so as to just toss away the substrate they came in, hopefully minimizing the risk of carrying mites over from the original source of the mealworms.

what you have affecting your colony are grain/flour mites from the genus Acarus. Very horrible indeed.

Yes condensation was your issue...high humidity and moisture is needed for them to thrive. Just keeping things dry will be the trick.

Wash the whole area where they were. Starting from scratch is the only cure. Sorry for the late reply, seems you have been helped already! awesome stuff, good luck starting your new colony!

__________________
Don't be jealous the voices only speak to me...

www.herprecon.org