Cricket questions

[skittles1234]

1. Half of the 10 dozen crickets I got died off in less then a day!! This has never happened to me before. There container was clean and fresh when I brought them home. They had access to cricket crack, water cubes and fresh cut zucchini and hibiscus leafs. I got them from a store I don't normally use but was near to where I was running around town. Im flipping out not only because of wasted money but because of the fact they acted diseased. They died within hours of purchase and are continuing to die! I've had to remove all the dead at an alarming rate. Worried that I shouldn't feed these off to my babies. As they die they are twitching and acting as though they were sprayed with pesticides. Sooo odd.
2. Found a black field cricket that was a female. Stuck her in a bin and she laid a lot of eggs. They hatched and I have about 150 babies! These safe to feed when they grow up a bit or should I just let um go?

 

[Swayne8998]

This seems to happen sometimes. It is thought to be a disease that randomly comes on and will spread throughout the colony. I bought some crickets from a different store yesterday too and they chirp like hell... nothing like the ones here

 

[KirbyTheCham]

What was the temperature of the container when you opened it? Not sure how the weather is in Florida but here in the Midwest we've had 100+ degree temperatures for days....just a thought.

I would think that the baby crickets that you hatched should be safe to feed, especially since they were "bred" in captivity and there were no pesticides on them. Just make sure you gut load them like you would store bought crickets....at least that's my thought but maybe someone with more cricket experience will chime in.

 

[Swayne8998]

What was the temperature of the container when you opened it? Not sure how the weather is in Florida but here in the Midwest we've had 100+ degree temperatures for days....just a thought.

I would think that the baby crickets that you hatched should be safe to feed, especially since they were "bred" in captivity and there were no pesticides on them. Just make sure you gut load them like you would store bought crickets....at least that's my thought but maybe someone with more cricket experience will chime in.

Crickets will survive (actually they thrive) in 90-100 degrees. I hear the black crickets are tougher than the brown ones... I don't really know.

 

[skittles1234]

I keep my crickets in a storage area that has access to the house and recieves a cool temp from the house. It stays about at 75 degrees. Weather is perfect for the babies outside of the storage closet! Fl is great for humidity purposes

 

[Swayne8998]

I keep my crickets in a storage area that has access to the house and recieves a cool temp from the house. It stays about at 75 degrees. Weather is perfect for the babies outside of the storage closet! Fl is great for humidity purposes

75 is a little low but I wouldn't think they would die...

 

[skittles1234]

75 is a little low but I wouldn't think they would die...

Keeps fruit flies down, smell down and reduces risk of bacteria. The adults do fine. I don't recommend this for nymphs

 

[sandrachameleon]

if you bought large ones, is it possible the crickets were just old? They only live about 6 weeks..

 

[Swayne8998]

Keeps fruit flies down, smell down and reduces risk of bacteria. The adults do fine. I don't recommend this for nymphs

Heat does well with almost any animal you are aiming to breed. I store them under my veiled's enclosure in a cabinet... I'm sure it gets hot down there. But I'm not breeding any.

 

[skittles1234]

if you bought large ones, is it possible the crickets were just old? They only live about 6 weeks..

The males didn't have full wings yet and the females ovipositor was to short for breeding. I had only a couple fully grown males/females

 

[Olimpia]

Was this pet store in Melbourne, by any chance? I may have sold you those crickets if you came in early this morning. If so that's so weird, I stopped by the store much later today for something and the cricket bins are all fine.

I'm trying to think what could be the cause... If mine do that it's usually because it got way too warm for them, but at the temps you're talking about that seems unlikely.

 

[skittles1234]

Was this pet store in Melbourne, by any chance? I may have sold you those crickets if you came in early this morning. If so that's so weird, I stopped by the store much later today for something and the cricket bins are all fine.

I'm trying to think what could be the cause... If mine do that it's usually because it got way too warm for them, but at the temps you're talking about that seems unlikely.

No very very odd you say this because I got them in vero beach yesterday. I live in Orlando I should have stopped by you!!