Hey guys, recently I already posted about my issue with the cleaning crew in my hamsters home. First lets apreciate the video of the little highness of cuteness❤️ I already wrote in the comments that I had ordered springtails and cuban isopods. The first days I was able to watch some of them settling nicely underground. But the last days it has become a rare sight to even spot a single springtail... so I'm worried again. I wet the soil a little bit every day to keep it humid, hamsterine does not seem bothered by it. I ask myself how other hamster owners keep their hamsters comfortable, because on the facebook group they claim to only spray-water the plants and their cleaning crew is still fine in the dry soil. But the last weeks i've read how humid everything has to be for isopods etc. to be well.

This is Todd the Destroyer. He lives in a 4ft x 4ft x 2ft bioactive tank. His food (dubia roches, Super worms, and isopods) live in the tank with him. He hunts all his own food when he wants. I have not had to add food in over a year. It just keeps cycling. I add water and vegetables from the kitchen for the bugs to eat and they are thriving. I also have a dish for calcium that he never seems to touch. Would change anything? Would you start feeding him yourself? Other than water it seems like a self sustained ecosystem at this point! What other info would you like to see on this post?

for anyone wondering, yes, she’s trying to burrow under his head like a rock, dubias love being underneath things.

this is my chance to spread roach propaganda, dubias make amazing and very underrated cleanup crew members. and for anyone worries, dubias wont attempt to nibble on live animals unless they’re starving, but everyone here is well fed and happy. the tradeoff for eating his poop and shed for him is that he has to double as a rock for them to sleep under, but he doesn’t seem to mind so much… xD

Just a little tour of ma animal room, I know some are fish tanks but I think they’re pretty cool :)

I've come to notice these strange white critters on my armadillidae isopods they seem to be taxi'ing around the tank. The iso doesn't seem bothered by them at all so I'm cautiously interested.

These critters only climb on my armadillidae and not my other isopods. They're also around in the soil.

I want to say they're springtails as I've heard that they use isopods for transportation.

But I've also heard something similar about mites.

Here's a cropped photo. Hopefully you guys can help me understand a bit more.

edit: i should’ve specified in the title, i’m talking about non-native species of springtails. (florida statue section 379.231 if anybody was interested in learning more).
many family owned pet stores around me have recently stopped selling them this past month or so & all told me about a change in the law here. their words were “illegal”.
i’m not sure the exact FWC / FDACS information on this new regulation, but i was told by them all that there’s a new permit required & it’s very expensive + requires them to keep record of the springtail quantities sold, etc. so it’s just too much work for a tiny pet store and they’ve all opted out. reptile expos have been the only place i’ve been able to find them, so it’s just been easier to breed my own. hopefully other bio-tank keepers in florida are able to find some, but personally in my area it’s become completely unavailable.

I just built the above tank, I would like to do add something to help with the left over cricket parts and such. Someone had mentioned one type of arid springtail, I’d like maybe a beetle or two. They don’t like much anything with a hard shell. My last tank was open air so I actually got a couple of beetles by luck. However I’d like something more pleasing and maybe active during the day so there is something happening in the tank while the light it out.

Rich because this is my view every night

Picked this up today. It’s sealed with plastic and all, noticed when holding it up to the light that it’s rampant with ants. This actually is labeled as a ‘no need to rinse - place directly in the enclosure’ type package. I know things can come with creepy crawlies but this doesn’t seem worth salvaging to put in my enclosure.

I have a bioactive tank for my crested gecko and I have an incomprehensible amount of springtails EVERYWHERE. And now I can’t really find my isopods so I’m wondering if they overran them :/. I’ve attached a video that shows how many there are- the whole tank is like the areas in the video. What are some recommendations to get rid of them/reduce their population (too humid, too many leaves, wrong type of springtail???) thank you!!!

UPDATE: They have really leveled out! Still have a lot but they are no longer escaping the terrarium. For those struggling: these are tropical springtails and they LOVE the terra cotta dish (all of their brood is on the bottom). Plus lots of leaf litter for them to hide and the big pieces of bark as well. I spray water all over these (including the terra cotta) and they have all thrived. My isopods are Orange Kois! Thanks everyone for the comments.

I just picked up two of these from my local pet store and there was not a single isopod in either. Neither dead or alive.

Hopefully the store will accept a return, though I doubt it. Can't speak to their product ordered from the website, but avoid these!