Okay, what on earth are these? Mite eggs? detailed pics inc'

[R B Customs]

Hi guys,

Some of you may have been following mine and smurfy's other thread about our baby Corn's ticks.

Just when we thought they were gone, something else has reared its ugly head...


Coby was fed on Thursday, and at the same time I prepared his second viv /tank, dis-infected cleaned and scrubbed everything, as per usual. And soaked some aspen in a bowl and microwaved it for a couple minutes until it sizzled. ( to cook any critters that might be in there )

He was fed in a seperate tank then moved into his fresh one once finished.

Tonight, i took his water bowl out to re-fill it and noticed it was damp underneath, and on closer inspection I noticed some spider web type things. on even closer inspection I noticed loads of black dots suspended in the 'webs'

The substrate under the bowl looks like Dew on the grass in winter, where you can see all of the webs glistening.

There is one black dot suspended on the bottom of the bowl too, hanging on by about 3 separate threads.

I'm sorry for the large images, I realize that they will fill some peoples monitors but the detail is the most important bit.
Again as with the other pics, it has to be noted that these things are TINY. It's just with the lens on my camera that i am able to get such up close shots.

http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/3888/webscropfq4.jpg

http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/4517/suspendnv7.jpg

http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/8583/webs2pa4.jpg

http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/5216/websti5.jpg

http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/826/webs2cropar2.jpg
So far the experience of owning our first snake has been pretty bad! We love him to bits and he is such a great little fella, but I am very bitter about all of these problems ! There are no other reptiles in my house, the only place these could have come from is where we got him from originally :( I feel like i've been had! Hope we can get little Coby sorted soon. I know it will take time though.

I've had some NIX shipped over here from the US, So i'm waiting for that to arrive. For now though I'm just gonna swap his tank every day.

[Pach]

No idea what mite eggs look like but I'm guessing funghi. With the dampness from the water bowl and the warm of the tank it could be a funghi thing (dots could be spores (?)). I could be wrong.

[R B Customs]

No idea what mite eggs look like but I'm guessing funghi. With the dampness from the water bowl and the warm of the tank it could be a funghi thing (dots could be spores (?)). I could be wrong.

My first idea would have been spiders, but they are absolutly TINY,
The viv and substrate was frsh on thursday night / early firday morning.

There's a picture i have which is the one suspended on the bottom of the bowl, and it looks like a hard crust of some kind. It is not round but looks more like a prune?

It's the fine threads that have got me baffled. Whatever has layed them, they have been layed in a very specific fashio as each one has a few threads attached to it.


Look close and you will also see some clear ones ( not to be confused with water droplets. you can tell the difference )

[CichlidAZ]

I think Pach is on the right track, check this out: http://flickr.com/photos/39294308@N00/2276025990

It's gotta be a mold or fungi.

[SquamishSerpents]

i would say those are some type of spider eggs. at my work we have spiders running around that are no bigger than the tip of a pencil, so maybe that could be it? what else makes silk webs?

[R B Customs]

I think Pach is on the right track, check this out: http://flickr.com/photos/39294308@N00/2276025990

It's gotta be a mold or fungi.

Well I'll be damned!
that does look very very similar.

I've left the other viv at the other end of the room to see if anything somes of it.

Thanks for that! I'll sleep better tonight I'm sure. I'll check in tomorrow

[R B Customs]

http://images.encarta.msn.com/xrefmedia/sharemed/targets/images/pho/t012/T012708A.jpg


now that looks very much like it

[Pach]

Don't insects lay eggs in batches?

Hmmm, not sure. I could ask my other-half (as he's another biologist) but he's currently passed out on the living floor! I think the Federer vs Nadal match has worn him out! :D

I still say funghi... wanna start a poll? :D

[PikaBun]

Spiders lay eggs in tight balls of silk. I would say that is definately fungi and that the black bits with the stalks are the sexual part of the fungi. The 'web' is the filiment root structure. Sounds like too much humidity in that area.

[akai06]

Looks like classic mycelium and spore structures. The good thing its probably a saprophytic fungi, meaning it lives off dead material. Id still clean that up though. Good luck.

[diamondlil]

Definitely agree that's mould growing there.

[Nanci]

I agree- mold or fungus. You have to watch under the water bowl, it can get damp from spilled water or even if the bowl is wet when you replace it. (I had a dog water bowl in the kitchen once that was getting splashed and I didn't know, and flies laid eggs in the damp carpet and I came home from work one day to a HUGE maggot invasion!)