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This is a continuously updated archive of the Aroid-L mailing list in a forum format - not an actual Forum. If you want to post, you will still need to register for the Aroid-L mailing list and send your postings by e-mail for moderation in the normal way.
soil bugs & anole lunch
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From: Lester Kallus lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1999.10.28 at 20:52:11(3795)
I looked in a couple Alocasia pots in my greenhouse today and saw some little soil bugs - approximately 1-2 mm in size at max. They appeared to have some wing like structures on their back (it's tough to tell when they're that small) but didn't buzz around much higher than a few mm. above the soil level. I can't tell if they were flying or jumping. I didn't see any on the plants themselves, only on the soil.
I assume, therefore, that these are some benign soil bugs living off the organic material in the soil and that they're not harming the plants.
So here's the question: would these be enough to sustain an anole or two? I had hoped to keep an anole or some other small lizard in my greenhouse but am not eager to introduce bugs or to feed them directly.
Les
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From: donburns at macconnect.com on 1999.10.28 at 21:19:33(3796)
Les,
Anoles, at least the kind that run amuck around here, thrive in the sun and
humidity. How warm does it stay on the floor of your greenhouse in January?
I can supply you all the anoles you need, but shipping them during the winter
months may be hazardous to their health.
Don
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>So here's the question: would these be enough to sustain an anole or two?
I had hoped to keep an anole or some other small lizard in my greenhouse but
am not eager to introduce bugs or to feed them directly.
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From: Lester Kallus lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1999.10.29 at 00:14:56(3797)
The room sometimes dipped into the high 60s during the day in the winter, but never drops below 65 (the bottom night time temperature). The room has radiant floor heat so that coolness down there is never ever a problem.
But the question remains, would they (yes, the common garden variety of FLA) subsist on what little they could find living on the soil? I doubt I'd need more than 2 to keep those bugs under control and half hoped they might eat a bad bug or two.
Les
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At 04:20 PM 10/28/1999 -0500, you wrote:
>Les,
>
>Anoles, at least the kind that run amuck around here, thrive in the sun and
>humidity. How warm does it stay on the floor of your greenhouse in January?
>
>
>I can supply you all the anoles you need, but shipping them during the winter
>months may be hazardous to their health.
>
>Don
>
> >So here's the question: would these be enough to sustain an anole or two?
> I had hoped to keep an anole or some other small lizard in my greenhouse but
>am not eager to introduce bugs or to feed them directly.
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From: "Julius Boos" ju-bo at email.msn.com> on 1999.10.29 at 00:18:25(3798)
Les,
I think these may be algae gnats, fly real slow, breed in the algae/soil,
acn be a pest. Don`t think they will be enough for any self-respecting
Anole, not enough in them.
Cheers,
Julius
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>I looked in a couple Alocasia pots in my greenhouse today and saw some
little soil bugs - approximately 1-2 mm in size at max. They appeared to
have some wing like structures on their back (it's tough to tell when
they're that small) but didn't buzz around much higher than a few mm. above
the soil level. I can't tell if they were flying or jumping. I didn't see
any on the plants themselves, only on the soil.
I assume, therefore, that these are some benign soil bugs living off the
organic material in the soil and that they're not harming the plants.
So here's the question: would these be enough to sustain an anole or two?
I had hoped to keep an anole or some other small lizard in my greenhouse but
am not eager to introduce bugs or to feed them directly.
Les
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From: Lester Kallus lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1999.10.29 at 14:08:57(3799)
They can be a pest? How? My Alocasia aquino (aka corazon) appears to be thriving but has several of them jumping (or is it flying) around over the soil surface. A pot of A. magnifica longiloba is equally infested. It too appears to be growing well. For that reason I haven't worried about them. Should I? Are they pests only because people don't like them flapping around or are they pests because they damage plants?
Too bad about the anoles not getting enough sustenance. I wouldn't want to starve them so will probably have to leave them all in Florida.
Les
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At 07:19 PM 10/28/1999 -0500, you wrote:
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Lester Kallus
>To: ju-bo@msn.com
>Date: Thursday, October 28, 1999 4:52 PM
>Subject: soil bugs & anole lunch
>
>
>Les,
>I think these may be algae gnats, fly real slow, breed in the algae/soil,
>acn be a pest. Don`t think they will be enough for any self-respecting
>Anole, not enough in them.
>
>Cheers,
>Julius
>
> >I looked in a couple Alocasia pots in my greenhouse today and saw some
>little soil bugs - approximately 1-2 mm in size at max. They appeared to
>have some wing like structures on their back (it's tough to tell when
>they're that small) but didn't buzz around much higher than a few mm. above
>the soil level. I can't tell if they were flying or jumping. I didn't see
>any on the plants themselves, only on the soil.
>
>I assume, therefore, that these are some benign soil bugs living off the
>organic material in the soil and that they're not harming the plants.
>
>So here's the question: would these be enough to sustain an anole or two?
>I had hoped to keep an anole or some other small lizard in my greenhouse but
>am not eager to introduce bugs or to feed them directly.
> Les
>
>
>
>
>
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From: "Susan Cooper" SCooper at cooperpower.com> on 1999.10.29 at 15:32:15(3800)
Are these the same as fruit flies? These look like they are coming out of the soil of my plants. Fly all over the place, like to head towards the windows, computer screen, etc.
Susan
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>Les,
>I think these may be algae gnats, fly real slow, breed in the algae/soil,
>acn be a pest. Don`t think they will be enough for any self-respecting
>Anole, not enough in them.
>
>Cheers,
>Julius
>
> >I looked in a couple Alocasia pots in my greenhouse today and saw some
>little soil bugs - approximately 1-2 mm in size at max. They appeared to
>have some wing like structures on their back (it's tough to tell when
>they're that small) but didn't buzz around much higher than a few mm. above
>the soil level. I can't tell if they were flying or jumping. I didn't see
>any on the plants themselves, only on the soil.
>
>I assume, therefore, that these are some benign soil bugs living off the
>organic material in the soil and that they're not harming the plants.
>
>So here's the question: would these be enough to sustain an anole or two?
>I had hoped to keep an anole or some other small lizard in my greenhouse but
>am not eager to introduce bugs or to feed them directly.
> Les
>
>
>
>
>
Susan Cooper
scooper@cooperpower.com
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From: Jonathan Ertelt jonathan.ertelt at vanderbilt.edu> on 1999.10.29 at 15:57:53(3802)
>Are these the same as fruit flies? These look like they are coming out of
>the soil of my plants. Fly all over the place, like to head towards the
>windows, computer screen, etc.
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>>I think these may be algae gnats, fly real slow, breed in the algae/soil,
>>acn be a pest. Don`t think they will be enough for any self-respecting
>>Anole, not enough in them.
Susan, Les, Julius, et al.
It sounds from Les' description like what he's got are the fairly
common springtails. One possible way to check this is to lift the pot up
and see if there are some flitting around underneath. Fungus knats (algae
knats?) are much more inclined to do at least some limited flying, and
Susan, are more likely to be what you have, unless you've been working on
breeding fruit flies and/or have lots of stuff around for them to eat and
mature ones to lay eggs in. Fruit flies generally are not soil dwellers at
any stage of their life cycle.
Beneficial nematodes applied to the soil in a water drench really
help cut down on the fungus knats, and many other pesky little bugs which
have part of their normal life cycle in the soil. I'm not familiar with
the common name "algae knats," but suspect that it may be another common
name for fungus knats.
Les, whether what you've got are springtails or fungus knats,
that's not enough to keep anoles happy for long. However, if you're ever
plagued by any ants, or if you see occasional roaches, the anoles will have
a field day. I think that anoles are a great idea, and Don, if you're
reading this and would be willing to supply a few, I'd be real interested
up here in Nashville. No, they don't need to be able to play guitar or
write songs, good or otherwise. I tend away from pesticides except soap,
oil, and alcohol, so I generally have some representatives of most pest
groups, as well as some beneficials doing their work as well.
Hope all this help.
Jonathan
Jonathan Ertelt
Greenhouse Manager
Vanderbilt University Biology Department
Box 1812, Sta. B
Nashville, TN 37235
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From: "Koenig's" gyst at soon.com> on 1999.10.29 at 22:29:39(3803)
If it's jumping they are perhaps you've got springtails.
Larry Koenig
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From: Lester Kallus lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1999.10.29 at 22:36:27(3805)
Wow, should I be saddened that I don't have roaches or ants in my house? No, I'm sorry that all I have is a few mealy bugs, one miniature case of what was called "white scale" and those mystery hopping/flying tiny bugs (whether springtails or algae gnats).
I'll assume that the one sequestered brugmansia with spider mite would also starve an anole.
I'm almost tempted to introduce ants but think I'll just let this one slide, get one of those rubber anoles and make believe.
I had wanted to introduce the anoles because it would interesting to see, not because I was concerned about those tiny bugs. Those bugs don't appear to be causing any damage so for now, at least, I'll just let them go on. Thanks for the information, anyway.
Les
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8 AM 10/29/1999 -0500, you wrote:
> >Are these the same as fruit flies? These look like they are coming out of
> >the soil of my plants. Fly all over the place, like to head towards the
> >windows, computer screen, etc.
>
> >>I think these may be algae gnats, fly real slow, breed in the algae/soil,
> >>acn be a pest. Don`t think they will be enough for any self-respecting
> >>Anole, not enough in them.
>
>Susan, Les, Julius, et al.
>
> It sounds from Les' description like what he's got are the fairly
>common springtails. One possible way to check this is to lift the pot up
>and see if there are some flitting around underneath. Fungus knats (algae
>knats?) are much more inclined to do at least some limited flying, and
>Susan, are more likely to be what you have, unless you've been working on
>breeding fruit flies and/or have lots of stuff around for them to eat and
>mature ones to lay eggs in. Fruit flies generally are not soil dwellers at
>any stage of their life cycle.
>
> Beneficial nematodes applied to the soil in a water drench really
>help cut down on the fungus knats, and many other pesky little bugs which
>have part of their normal life cycle in the soil. I'm not familiar with
>the common name "algae knats," but suspect that it may be another common
>name for fungus knats.
>
> Les, whether what you've got are springtails or fungus knats,
>that's not enough to keep anoles happy for long. However, if you're ever
>plagued by any ants, or if you see occasional roaches, the anoles will have
>a field day. I think that anoles are a great idea, and Don, if you're
>reading this and would be willing to supply a few, I'd be real interested
>up here in Nashville. No, they don't need to be able to play guitar or
>write songs, good or otherwise. I tend away from pesticides except soap,
>oil, and alcohol, so I generally have some representatives of most pest
>groups, as well as some beneficials doing their work as well.
>
>Hope all this help.
>
>Jonathan
>
>Jonathan Ertelt
>Greenhouse Manager
>Vanderbilt University Biology Department
>Box 1812, Sta. B
>Nashville, TN 37235
>
>
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From: Pugturd at aol.com on 1999.10.30 at 06:58:45(3807)
Why not introduce crickets they sound nice and the lizards can eat them. My
cousin has lots of lizards and they all love crickets and they will not harm
your plants. I might do this later next year.
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From: "Julius Boos" ju-bo at email.msn.com> on 1999.10.30 at 17:04:21(3811)
Dear Susan,
Yours sound like the algae gnats I was describing, if they are black, tiny,
about the size of the point of a pin, slow fliers. They breed in the green
algae that sometimes grows on top of the soil in pots. Saw LOTS at MOBOT
in the aquatic pots, used to be a pain in the pots I had in an indoor
greenhouse I once had in the TV room with seedlings kept overwinter. They
fertilized the first Dracontioides I grew there, the blooms smelt like
rotten meat and old dirty socks, and these little gnats were seen visiting
the blooms where subequently seed developed.
Cheers,
Julius
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>>Are these the same as fruit flies? These look like they are coming out of
the soil of my plants. Fly all over the place, like to head towards the
windows, computer screen, etc.
Susan<<
>Les,
>I think these may be algae gnats, fly real slow, breed in the algae/soil,
>acn be a pest. Don`t think they will be enough for any self-respecting
>Anole, not enough in them.
>
>Cheers,
>Julius
>
> >I looked in a couple Alocasia pots in my greenhouse today and saw some
>little soil bugs - approximately 1-2 mm in size at max. They appeared to
>have some wing like structures on their back (it's tough to tell when
>they're that small) but didn't buzz around much higher than a few mm. above
>the soil level. I can't tell if they were flying or jumping. I didn't
see
>any on the plants themselves, only on the soil.
>
>I assume, therefore, that these are some benign soil bugs living off the
>organic material in the soil and that they're not harming the plants.
>
>So here's the question: would these be enough to sustain an anole or two?
>I had hoped to keep an anole or some other small lizard in my greenhouse
but
>am not eager to introduce bugs or to feed them directly.
> Les
>
>
>
>
>
Susan Cooper
scooper@cooperpower.com
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From: "Judy McCann" jmccann at tez.net> on 1999.10.30 at 17:10:45(3813)
Could someone with experience in "keeping" anoles in their greenhouse tell
me the lowest "safe" night temperature for them? Thanks JMcCann
-----Original Message-----
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To: jmccann@tez.net
Date: Saturday, October 30, 1999 12:00 AM
Subject: Re: soil bugs & anole lunch
>Why not introduce crickets they sound nice and the lizards can eat them. My
>cousin has lots of lizards and they all love crickets and they will not
harm
>your plants. I might do this later next year.
>
>
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From: Betsytrips at aol.com on 1999.10.30 at 17:13:40(3814)
Crickets will eat your carpets and your walls and drive you crazy with their
chirping. Hope you enjoy them in the house. I do not think that would be a
particularly good idea. There must be a better solution to feeding the
critters.
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