hi guys

i really need to ask

i change my Chinese Water Dragon's bark ect every 4 weeks but after around 2 wks I start to see tiny tiny insects crawling along there vine and waterfall . even water bowl

is this maybe in the bark when I put it in or is it something I am doing wrong ?

is there anything I can do to get rid of these annoying little things they are tiny bearly see them but I always worry cos once I even found one crawling on one of my dragons this is so irritating

you're definitely going to want to change that substrait, there shouldnt be any bugs in there. i would switch to paper towels or newspapers for now and take your little guy to the vet to make sure he didn't ketch anything from the nastys.

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If your using any type of wood or peat in a moist terri your going to end up with wood mites (their harmless, but annoying and white to yellowish in color) sooner or later. this is one of the things that could be bothering you based that they stay where it's wet. The only real thing you can do is keep the cage drier or get some predatory mites (mites that eat mites) though their hard to come by and a bit pricy. The other that you may see is these small flies, just leave them be they go away on their own.

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you might also get froghoppers, they are hemipterans that suck up plant fluid. My cage is rampant with them and the larvae get in the water dishes and look like little mats of floating black specs.

see I dont have real plants in tank only plastic would it maybe be the moist that is attracting them ?

Any type of wood that stays moist probably attracts them. Who knows where they come from, but then, there they are.

I agree with The D. Change your substrate to something like paper towels, newspaper or tile. They're much easier to clean, and they are much healthier for your dragon. Plus, if you keep the wood chips, you run the risk of impaction should your dragon accidentally swallow a piece.

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mt Chinese Water Dragon's I use bark its my Bearded Dragons I had on woodchip but have now changed that

If they're tiny and whitish and can even gather on the water's surface then you may have springtails. They may be annoying, but they're not harmful. I welcome them in my millipede habitats because if you have springtails showing up then you know the conditions are good for your 'pede too. It's when I don't have springtails that I start to worry. I would think water dragons prefer a similar habitat...only more arboreal and with more open water.

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