Cricket Breeding

[Embrace Calamity]

So I've decided to try my hand at just a little cricket breeding, but I don't know much about it so bare with me. I have two tanks set up, and in the breeder tank, I have a dish of moist peat moss a few inches deep. It's been in there for about 36 hours, and I've seen plenty of eggs being laid. However, I just checked on it, and there was some mold growing on the surface. So questions:

1) Do I need to be concerned about the mold? Will it harm the crickets or the eggs? (I removed the mold but I'm sure it'll come back.)
2) How do I keep that from happening?
3) How long do I leave the container in there before taking it out? And when I do, do I immediately put the lid on it, with or without holes?

Thanks in advance for any help/constructive criticism.

~Maggot

 

[JM_Daniels]

Hi there,

Peat moss is a great substrate for the eggs because it retains moisture well (which they do need). However a downside is that if it's too wet, or if there is not enough ventilation in the tanks, then you will get mold.

1.) Mold is not going to hurt your adult crickets (they actually can eat it, which many wild crickets do). However it is bad for the eggs (can interfere with them hatching) and is bad for you to breathe in. You are right to be removing it.

2.) How wet would you say the peat moss is on a scale of 1-5 (1 being just slightly moist and 5 being pretty saturated)? And are you using a screen mesh top for the lid? The main reasons that you get mold in a cricket cage are either too much moisture or not enough ventilation or a combination of both.

3.) Are you asking how long you leave the egg container in the breeder tank? You can remove it a few days to a week after they've first been laying eggs. It doesn't sound like you covered your egg container with mesh or anything to protect it from the male crickets. If you are not protecting it, then take it out within 48 hours if there are eggs because otherwise the male crickets will eat them.

 

[Embrace Calamity]

Hi there,

Peat moss is a great substrate for the eggs because it retains moisture well (which they do need). However a downside is that if it's too wet, or if there is not enough ventilation in the tanks, then you will get mold.

1.) Mold is not going to hurt your adult crickets (they actually can eat it, which many wild crickets do). However it is bad for the eggs (can interfere with them hatching) and is bad for you to breathe in. You are right to be removing it.

2.) How wet would you say the peat moss is on a scale of 1-5 (1 being just slightly moist and 5 being pretty saturated)? And are you using a screen mesh top for the lid? The main reasons that you get mold in a cricket cage are either too much moisture or not enough ventilation or a combination of both.

3.) Are you asking how long you leave the egg container in the breeder tank? You can remove it a few days to a week after they've first been laying eggs. It doesn't sound like you covered your egg container with mesh or anything to protect it from the male crickets. If you are not protecting it, then take it out within 48 hours if there are eggs because otherwise the male crickets will eat them.

I posted this on another forum and didn't get any responses as helpful as yours, so thank you! I'm not sure how wet the peat moss is (I'd check now but I have a sleeping kitten in my lap). I have a screen mesh top for the lid on the tank, though I didn't cover the peat moss. I had had a low watt heat bulb over the peat moss for the first day, but my cat knocked it over and broke it. I don't have another one but I put a regular bulb in (which I know doesn't do much, but I figured was better than nothing) and no more mold has grown back. I'll be getting another heat light tomorrow. Do you think that will be enough to prevent the issue in the future?

And when I take the container out, can I put it into the tank set up for the babies? There are already some small crickets in there; do I need to worry about them eating the eggs? And should I get another light to put over the container in that tank too? I've read that they do best at higher temperatures.

In advance, thank you again for your help.

~Maggot