Another bug post

[EchoTheLeoTort]

Ok so, I just moved Echo my little leopard into a closed chamber, and I have 3 real plants growing in there. He's been in there 3 weeks now and just today I have found little white bugs, two of which were crawling on him, but the rest were on my plants and the plant leaves. I have read a lot of posts on here about springtails but I can't really tell if they are springtails or white mites. To my eye they look like little round white things, which people would say are white mites, but in the pictures i just took some of them look longer bodied like springtails, so is it possible to have both? If it's mites only should I be concerned? I really hate bugs but I hate the idea of them crawling on Echo even more. If they are springtails they can stay because they are harmless, but mites just gotta go! Please let me know what bug you think it is?

 

[pfara]

I dunno if mites jump but springtails do! I've had quite a few in my enclosure but they seemed to have died down some. Unfortunately, now I have stupid gnats.. See if they hop when disturbed.

 

[jjsull33]

I know some people are against having bugs in their cages at all, but Pill bugs/Sow bugs won't cause harm to the tort and will keep the mites/gnats in line.

 

[lkwagner]

I have the same problem! First had little white bugs in the coco coir and then I switched to cypress and all 3 enclosures have little white bugs! Idk what to do and if its okay for them to be in there with the torts.

 

[pfara]

I attribute the reduction of springtails to the addition of worms in my enclosure. The gnats died down when I added sticky pads. Hey Marissa, are those bugs just on the plants? Also, are you sure they're not greenish? Might actually be aphids. Torts and bugs go hand in hand so I've been told. Gotta love nature

 

[EchoTheLeoTort]

They looked kind of yellowish to me personally but I figured i'd say white cause when I searched I couldn't find anything about "yellow bugs" I think they are just on the plants, I haven't seen them in the substrate, and I've had my tortoise since March, and i've used the same substrate and never had the problem. When i got plants to put in, they didn't have any bugs on them at all, but now all the sudden today i get a surprise. I haven't seen any gnats at all, nothing flying, just those bugs on the plants.

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hmm they kind of look like aphids I think you may be right! They are harmless bugs? Thank you!

 

[jjsull33]

If they showed up after the plants were introduced they were probably eggs on the plant or in the roots, I don't think they are any threat to a tort but I don't know that for sure. If they are aphids then the only damage should be to the plant. A few pill bugs go a long way to keeping a tort cage clean, they eat the eggs of bugs like mites, aphids, and gnats plus they also eat the tort debris like poop and left overs. Not to keep pushing them but I find them an easy and free solution to the little bugs being everywhere. Just keep in mind that they actually have gills and need moisture to live, they are isopods I believe, which shouldn't be a problem if you are spraying to keep humidity up.

 

[EchoTheLeoTort]

Yes i pour water into the corners to keep the lower substrate damp, and throughout the day i spray the top substrate to keep humidity up. It's usually 75-85% humidity, and its at 90 degrees during the day.

 

[Tom]

I can't see the bugs in your pics, but tortoise mites are very uncommon. It is highly unlikely that this is what you have. There are all sort of little flies and bugs that are in our environments and will thrive in the conditions we create for our tortoises. To the best of my knowledge, none of these are harmful to our tortoises.

 

[Pokeymeg]

Those are aphids. They are a plant pest not a tortoise pest. So while I highly doubt they will harm your tort, if you care about that plant you need to treat it ! They will suck the life out of it...annoying little guys. Sometimes it's better to just quarantine it outside and let nature run its course because if you treat the plant, I would not use it as tort food anymore (if that's what you do). But that's just my own precaution. What I use to get rid of them is not at all environmentally friendly (really nasty chemicals I hate to use).

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[JoesMum]

Re: RE: Another bug post

Those are aphids. They are a plant pest not a tortoise pest. So while I highly doubt they will harm your tort, if you care about that plant you need to treat it ! They will suck the life out of it...annoying little guys. Sometimes it's better to just quarantine it outside and let nature run its course because if you treat the plant, I would not use it as tort food anymore (if that's what you do). But that's just my own precaution. What I use to get rid of them is not at all environmentally friendly (really nasty chemicals I hate to use).

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using TortForum mobile app

I agree... what you need is ladybirds... or whatever your local aphid predator is. You can try rinsing them off with soapy water, but they will return.

 

[EchoTheLeoTort]

no worries any more everyone. They were only on that plant, and soon after posting this i moved the plant outdoors before i left on a vacation. I went today and bought a bunch of artificial plants and hung them up on the walls which i like the look of better. There is still a petunia plant and spider plant that are live that are in there.

heres the new updated enclosure