Taceas
USW = UB313
For the past couple of months I have had a few small reddish beetles in my vivariums. I'd never seen any more than 2-3 dead ones in the water bowls.
But during feeding night last night, my two 10-gallon tanks were over-run with the boogers! Crawling all over everything in sight by the hundreds!
They look like mini meal worm beetles, only a couple of millimeters in length and reddish colored. When you squish them, they smell strongly of antiseptic...yeah I know sounds weird, but I can't place the smell. Closest I can come is antiseptic soap used in the hospital. Definately distasteful as my beardie tried one the other day, and promptly spit it out and rubbed his open mouth around on the sides of his tank.
Has anyone had a problem with these before or know what they are? I've looked around in my insect books and can't find an identification for them. They also seem to be drilling holes in my wood decorations, as there are piles of wood dust under them and neat holes drilled everywhere.
They're mostly confined to the aquariums where they can't climb the glass all that well, and they don't fly so hot either. But a few have made it out and into other vivs. But it mostly seems to be concentrated to two vivs.
Any suggestions for eradicating them? I'll try and get a good picture with size reference and attach it at a later date. I've moved the two yearling snakes from those enclosures elsewhere. I was thinking of spraying Raid in there with all of the cage furniture and substrate and placeing a wet towel over the screen lid to trap in the vapors. Any harm in that?
These things have a mob mentality. :crying:
But during feeding night last night, my two 10-gallon tanks were over-run with the boogers! Crawling all over everything in sight by the hundreds!
They look like mini meal worm beetles, only a couple of millimeters in length and reddish colored. When you squish them, they smell strongly of antiseptic...yeah I know sounds weird, but I can't place the smell. Closest I can come is antiseptic soap used in the hospital. Definately distasteful as my beardie tried one the other day, and promptly spit it out and rubbed his open mouth around on the sides of his tank.
Has anyone had a problem with these before or know what they are? I've looked around in my insect books and can't find an identification for them. They also seem to be drilling holes in my wood decorations, as there are piles of wood dust under them and neat holes drilled everywhere.
They're mostly confined to the aquariums where they can't climb the glass all that well, and they don't fly so hot either. But a few have made it out and into other vivs. But it mostly seems to be concentrated to two vivs.
Any suggestions for eradicating them? I'll try and get a good picture with size reference and attach it at a later date. I've moved the two yearling snakes from those enclosures elsewhere. I was thinking of spraying Raid in there with all of the cage furniture and substrate and placeing a wet towel over the screen lid to trap in the vapors. Any harm in that?
These things have a mob mentality. :crying:
