Mites in Shanjing Enclosure

[shaun]

Lately I've been noticing that my Shanjing tank has a decent population of mites in it. I haven't attempted to identify their species (does anyone know of any that are known to parasitise newts?) and I've yet to see any on the newts, but I'm still worried. When I first saw the mites, I changed the substrate from 50% coconut fibre/50% soil, to 100% soil, but it doesn't look as though they were simply feeding off of the coconut fibre, as they're back in full force. The soil was taken from outside, and I regularly see similar mites on my balcony, so I don't know what to think. Can anyone reccomend a better substrate, or should I even be worried?

 

[alan]

Mites or springtails? If they jump, they're springtails. Either way up, they are feeding on organic matter in the enclosure and are unlikely to be harmful to the newts (although they may irritate them).

 

[kaysie]

A small population of springtails is beneficial because they eat up the fecal material. Like Alan said, they could be irritating in large numbers.

 

[shaun]

Well, they're definitely mites, and I get the impression that they spend most of their time in the soil (they seem to come out when I add water) so I guess I can hold off on worrying for a while. Thanks a lot!

 

[ira]

just think of them as a supplemental food source.