Mites

M

mark

Guest
Hi All, my salamanders (a.maculatums) have some unwelcome guests in the form of mites. They are extremely small, round with white bodies (although I have seen larger ones with dark bodies - maybe the white ones are juveniles?). I first noticed them in my worm tub feeding on a dead worm and inevitably they have made it into the tank. I suspect they are a form of soil mite. They've taken a liking to collecting around the cloaca of my sals, presumably to feed on faecal matter but I'm not sure if they are harming/biting them. So far I've been brushing them off but there must be a fair number in the tank because they are back on the sals within hours. Has anyone experienced this before? The tank is well established and heavily planted so I'm reluctant to rip it all out and start again. The substrate is a mix of soil and coconut fibre. Any suggestions or advice on the control of these pests? Many thanks, Mark
 
Man no matter how established your tank is, you should rip it apart right away and clean it. If they are collecting on the cloaca of the sals, that is not good. They could be causing harm. Would you want bugs all over your butt hole. I dont think so. I dont know what these little things are but I dont think there mites. Mites would be attaching themselves to you sals back and body. They seem to be feeding off its fecal matter. Clean the sals off and quarantine them in a separate container while you clean the other tank. Make sure to use a 1 part bleach to 15-20 parts water solution to clean EVERYTHING. This should kill anything on whatever you have. If you have live plants, I would quarantine them until your sure the little white bugs are off those too. You'll have to get new plants or fake plants for now. When your sure there are no bugs left on the original plants, then it could be safe to put them back in. Good luck. Hope your sals are alright.

(Message edited by nuggular on February 01, 2005)

(Message edited by nuggular on February 01, 2005)
 
wow, definitely take his advice. ive seen mites kill various animals (arachnids, lizards, snakes, etc).... sometimes within days! the mites that cause this fatal harm are indeed a tiny white species. definitely care for the matter as soon as possible.
 
Personally, I think they're springtails if they were feeding on a dead worm. Mites don't feed on dead organisms, just the living juicy ones. Springtails are like the garbage men of your tank. They eat all the nasty stuff (like feces and dead worms).
 
Here's a link to what springtales look like,

http://www.uky.edu/Agriculture/Entomology/entfacts/trees/ef420.htm

Joan you might be on to something. Thx for the info. It helped me as well. I had some little bugs in my tokay gecko cage. It has bark in it and is in the basement were I live. Since the tokays need moisture I have to mist the tank and it made a perfect living area for the springtales. Thx again for the info Joan. Needless to say I vacumed them up and washed everything in the tank and put new bark down. Mabye that is what you have mark. I would still get rid of them and wash everything.

(Message edited by nuggular on February 01, 2005)
 
I disagree, some mites certainly do eat dead organisms, and from Mark's description they are not springtails.
 
Many soil mites are detrivores and can often be found on a dead animal within an hour or two after death giving the appearence of killing the animal.
If the animals are acting irritated then I would be concerned with the mites or if the mites gave the appearence of being attached.
To date some species of Trombiculid mites have been shown to parasitize caudates (and I am sure that there are other types of mites).

Josh,
The there are typically two different mite species seen on reptiles, the common snake mite (Ophionyssus natricis) which is usually black (except in some nymphal stages) and a red one which is H.trombidiiformis. These mites are not the ones that parasitize invertebrates such as the scorpion or roaches.

That said, if you want to keep sowbugs (isopods) in with your salamander, the isopods should feed on the mites (and the salamanders can eat the isopods).

Ed
 
would that be similar say to a potato bug. that's what we call them in WI anyways. I looked at some pics of sowbugs and they look very similar. Would they work as well.
 
I've never heard the term "potato bug" in my entire life in Wisconsin.
 
lol, thanx for the info edward! i am familiar with the mites on invertibrates as well as the species found on lizards and snakes. i worked at a pet store where a few of the snakes we got had come in with snake mites. i have also seen many of the red mites on wild uta and urosaurs ive cauaght. i have seen the white species totally whipe out an adult scolopendra heros (giant centipede) in a couple days. the only invert ive ever seen that survived an entire body covered in them was a vinegaroon. those things are tough. anyhoo, its very interresting learning the species. thank you again edward.
 
edward, im curious, as far as i know, i have never seen a caudate parasitic mite. what are symtoms or anything like that to watch for incase this ever happens??
 
Thanks for the input folks. After some research and investigation I've decided that they are soil mites of the family Oribatidae (hence the round body). They feed on decaying matter. I'm guessing that as the tank is relatively clean they gravitate towards the only waste material they can find. They are quite prolific in the worm cultures I buy from bait shops.

They don't seem to irritate the sals and I've managed to get rid of the bulk of them through spot cleaning. I wonder if there is anything I can introduce to prey on them? Woodlice perhaps?

Ed - just spotted your comment about isopods. In the UK they are known commonly as woodlice or pillbugs. They do quite well in tanks so maybe I'll give that a go.

(Message edited by aartse_tuyn on February 02, 2005)
 
Hi John,
Some of the kids here in the PA/NJ area also call them potato bugs but yes it is the same basic isopod.

Josh, usually what is seen with caudates are the mites embedded into the skin of the caudate. These can cause raised reddish welts or even the loss of digits (which usually regrow).
There is a large red velvet like aquatic mite that has been documented to prey (note not parasitize) on small fish and occasionally newts (I would have to look up the genus).

Ed
 
Cool thx Ed. So if I ever see those things again, should I just grab some of those isopods from outside and let them loose in my tank near the bastard mites or whatever they were?
 
Well you can order starter cultures if you want. One of the companies that sells ffs is getting ready to sell an isopod that is orangish (I collected some from outside and put them in with the banana roaches and that got rid of a lot of the mites.

Ed
 
It's would be wise to find out what you have before grabbing woodlice from outdoors. Woodlice may not prey on springtails. Soil mites move very slowly and make an easy snack. Woodlice are essentially vegetarians.
 
The springtails that live in my banana roach colony look to be unaffected by the isopods unlike the mites I had show up in the colony.
Actually woodlice are omniverous and are known in the wild to predate on mites and someother arthropods. The woodlice may predate on the mites to get the calcium that is in the exoskeleton of the mites.

Ed
 
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