White crusty stuff growing on my beetle! Help!

[Bugoodle]

Mikey, my Dyscinetus morator, has of some type of whitish-yellow crust growing on him. Up close it looks like little tiny egg cluster, but is more of a thin hard crust.  It's on the back of his wings, his legs and some spots on his carapace. At first I thought another cage mate pooped on him or he got a little frisky with my harlequin flower beetle again. So I didn't bother cleaning him off, it'll come off and Mikey is a very shy little bug - until it got bigger and spreaded on other parts of him. I'm really worried. I just gave him a little bath, I was able to gently scrub the stuff off his back wings with a cotton swab and some warm water, but he just moved around too much so I couldn't get the rest. I let him paddle around in some luke warm water to work some off of his legs, that didn't do much though. My other insects who live with him(a harlequin flower beetle, a mimicking beetle roach, and a green june bug) do not have them. Mikey is wild caught, but I've had him for about a little over 3 months now and have never noticed this stuff. Is this some type of fungal infection or a parasitic egg? If so, please tell me how to treat him!

Despite this mess, this has no impact on Mikey's movement and behavior. He acts normal. To add, I've also been finding small spots of the same crust on the sides of the glass where Mikey hangs out at. I see nothing that could of contributed to this though.

I've also recently been finding some type of tiny white mites(I think they're mites. Mold mites?). They seem to be on their banana only in clusters though and I thought it was mold until it started moving! Is the crusty stuff on my rice beetle eggs of the mite? 

Thanks for any help!

 

[aspenentomology]

Photos would be appreciated. But it sounds like it could be entomophagus fungus. In that case, I would probably quarantine all of the insects, change the substrate, and clean the enclosure with bleach. I really don't know though, so I wouldn't go freaking out. I'm sure there are others here who know much better than I do. Good luck  

 

[Bugoodle]

Thank you! I will quarantine them tomarrow. How deadly is that fungi? Is there something I can do to treat them? My harlequin flower beetle is up already for some strange reason. I gave her a good check - and there's a spot of it on her now! God, what do I do and how did this even happen?! 

 

[aspenentomology]

Thank you! I will quarantine them tomarrow. How deadly is that fungi? Is there something I can do to treat them? My harlequin flower beetle is up already for some strange reason. I gave her a good check - and there's a spot of it on her now! God, what do I do and how did this even happen?! 

As far as I know, entomophagus fungi probably kills whatever it ends up growing on. It's pretty rare, however. I hope that's not what you're dealing with and that somebody more knowledgeable can help. 

 

[Bugoodle]

Mikey's had this stuff on him for over week now. Even after his bath yesterday, it's back. Is betadine safe to use? I heard of people using it on tarantulas.

 

[Bugoodle]

Hard to see, but the best picture I could get. Mikey the rice beetle climbing his house. Took this picture today. You can see the white fungi crust  on returning to his bottom wings. The brown specks above are just flakes of coconut substrate. I cleaned their tank out with bleach. I even disposed of wooden items they had to climb on, including the house as wood can harbor mold. I've also decided no more banana. No matter how much they love it. Back to jellies. I want to keep their tank as clean as possible now. I've quarantined my green June bug(no fungi seen) and beetle mimicking roach(questionable darkening of the cloaca, not the same fungi I've been finding though). I don't have enough containers to quarantine all 4 bugs, so my harlequin flower beetle and rice beetle(both already having the fungi) live in the main tank together.

I looked at images of entomophagus fungi , but it looks thicker and almost one of those "fluffy" fungi/mold. The fungi on my bugs is thin and crusty. It kinda reminds me of the fungi my turtle had when she had shell rot one time. It looks like their shell is discolored or damaged and not the typical fluffy moldy look.

 

[aspenentomology]

The fact that it's coming back isn't a good sign, I'd think. I'm not sure if betadine is safe or if it could even help. I really wish someone else could come along because I have no experience with entomophagous fungi. It's good that you cleaned everything and quarantined them. I really hope it just ends up being nothing... I don't know what to say other than good luck.

Edit: Actually, since nobody seems to want to respond, I might as well mention @Hisserdude because I know he has experience with similar fungi (as detailed on his blog).

 

[Bugoodle]

Thanks. At this point...I might just have take the bullet and use some diluted betadine..but I don't know if it's ok. It's driving me mad!

Trying to reduce the growth of it, I used a very thin layer of substrate. I won't be spraying it down either. I'm trying to keep the tank dry. I just hope that doesn't harm the beetles.

Mikey is a very picky eater and won't touch the jellies, so I put a small piece of apple in the tank. Apple isn't as messy as banana and doesn't rot as fast. He's snuggled under it right now. Not a good idea, but the poor guy misses his humidity.

 

[Hisserdude]

I have good news and bad news... Good news, this is not an entomophagous fungus. 

Bad news, these are grain mites in their hyposus stage... Unfortunately the white mites you are seeing in your enclosure are not harmless soil mites, but rather grain mites, the bane of an insect keeper's existence...

When they run out of food, moisture, or space, these mites will latch onto invertebrates and shed into a "hyposus" stage, in which they basically become little living suction cups that stick to your inverts until conditions are better, (they'll also latch on to the sides of enclosures in little clumps, as you've seen). Unfortunately while doing so they can clog up leg and mouthpart joints, making mobility difficult, and can even clog up breathing spiracles, suffocating your pets... 

You're gonna wanna lower the amount of supplemental foods you are feeding your beetles, (fruits, fish pellets, dog food, etc.), remove uneaten food a day or two after feeding, and replace or sterilize the infested substrate if the infestation is particularly bad. Springtails and other cleaner crews can help prevent grain mites from reaching plague proportions, but ultimately it's good enclosure hygiene that's the most effective in keeping grain mite numbers low. 

 

[Bugoodle]

Thankyou thank you thank you! Can I ask, how can I get rid of them(the ones on the beetles) and what should I use?

 

[Hisserdude]

Thankyou thank you thank you! Can I ask, how can I get rid of them(the ones on the beetles) and what should I use?

You might able to use a small, wet paintbrush or something to brush some of them off, gonna take a while though, honestly might be better off moving the beetle to a temporary container with fresh substrate, which will hopefully induce the mites to pop off the beetle into greener pastures, (or so they think). 

 

[Bugoodle]

Can I spray down their cage again? Maybe just lightly? I read about grain mites and where they come from. But I don't think I've ever fed them grain. Is coconut soil a grain? Should I get a different soil? All that's available in the store is coconut soil or critter soil. Bugs walk better on critter soil, and stays more humid, but is just so messy and is a breeding ground for gnats and fruit fly larvae. Coconut soil is a lot more clean, absorbant, and last longer.  Aspen is ok, but very dry and can mold, but is a very clean substrate. Is that ok for temporary use? 

 

[Hisserdude]

Can I spray down their cage again? Maybe just lightly? I read about grain mites and where they come from. But I don't think I've ever fed them grain. Is coconut soil a grain? Should I get a different soil? All that's available in the store is coconut soil or critter soil. Bugs walk better on critter soil, and stays more humid, but is just so messy and is a breeding ground for gnats and fruit fly larvae. Coconut soil is a lot more clean, absorbant, and last longer.  Aspen is ok, but very dry and can mold, but is a very clean substrate. Is that ok for temporary use? 

Sure, but grain mites do love moisture FYI. 

Grain mites are present basically everywhere, could have come in with substrate, on fruits, if you keep dogs or cats then their food is likely full of grain mite eggs, even a lot of human foods like oats and such probably have grain mite eggs in them, and after touching infested material you could have dispersed eggs into your enclosures as you checked on them. 

Once grain mites are in your collection, there's essentially no way of EVER eradicating them completely, they'll always be there, waiting to eat at rotten leftovers. Best bet is to keep removing uneaten food, and invest in some springtails, or even other mite species that will eat or outcompete grain mites. 

 

[Bugoodle]

Thank you! I see, that's why Mikey has the worst of them. He always enjoyed the water spills from the dish....

I just checked my beetles and the 2 spots on my Harlequin Flower Beeter have decreased in size, my Rice beetle on the other hand, it seems that mites have been spreading from his bottom to his plastron, near the chest. They aren't eating but behaving normally. I cleaned the rest of the mites off of Mikey's bottom. Hopefully this will be the last time I find them there.

Rice beetles can die if there's no humidity. I hope he can just hang in there, until things are better. Can I place a tiny piece of banana on a little dish in there? I know banana rots quickly. I'll change it every day, but it will have to be in there over night because Mikey eats at night, while Inky eats during the day and doesn't like being disturbed. I'll change it when she's finished with it. 

 

[Hisserdude]

Thank you! I see, that's why Mikey has the worst of them. He always enjoyed the water spills from the dish....

I just checked my beetles and the 2 spots on my Harlequin Flower Beeter have decreased in size, my Rice beetle on the other hand, it seems that mites have been spreading from his bottom to his plastron, near the chest. They aren't eating but behaving normally. I cleaned the rest of the mites off of Mikey's bottom. Hopefully this will be the last time I find them there.

Rice beetles can die if there's no humidity. I hope he can just hang in there, until things are better. Can I place a tiny piece of banana on a little dish in there? I know banana rots quickly. I'll change it every day, but it will have to be in there over night because Mikey eats at night, while Inky eats during the day and doesn't like being disturbed. I'll change it when she's finished with it. 

While the mites like moisture, the main thing that fuels them is food, and unfortunately it doesn't even have to be rotting food... Banana seems to be one of their favorite fruits, so if your beetles can eat apples or beetle jellies or something else, that'd be preferable. If not, then just feed very small amounts of banana and remove uneaten portions daily. 

 

[Bugoodle]

Great news! The mite thing has really dropped majorly! My harlequin flower beetle has no more and my Rice beetle is looking great too!

 

[Acro]

You can get Predatory Mites to eat your Grain Mites.  I did it years ago with some roaches.  Got rid of all the mites, I'm not sure why people don't use Predatory Mites more often.  Well, I guess they are kinda expensive.  But just look for biological control companies that sell them.

I have a post about it on here (BeetleForum.net) or on RoachForum.com that you may be able to find.  You'll need a specific type of Predatory Mite, I don't remember the name, but it's in that thread I made a while ago.

Good Luck!

 

[Goliathus]

The mite is called Hypoaspis miles (=Stratiolaelaps scimitus).  I've had some experience with them.  Using them to control fungus gnats can be rather hit or miss, but that's true of all biological controls.  When the gnat population crashes, the mite population will too, of course.  You'd probably have to replenish the mite population periodically, whenever a gnat outbreak occurs.  Of course, by the time you start noticing the gnats, they'll probably have already infested a lot of substrate.  As for controlling grain mites - indeed, the population of these can be reduced down to negligible levels when Hypoaspis is present.  Probably best to keep grain mites under control by other means, but this isn't always easy to do in certain situations.

 

[Hisserdude]

The mite is called Hypoaspis miles (=Stratiolaelaps scimitus).  I've had some experience with them.  Using them to control fungus gnats can be rather hit or miss, but that's true of all biological controls.  When the gnat population crashes, the mite population will too, of course.  You'd probably have to replenish the mite population periodically, whenever a gnat outbreak occurs.  Of course, by the time you start noticing the gnats, they'll probably have already infested a lot of substrate.  As for controlling grain mites - indeed, the population of these can be reduced down to negligible levels when Hypoaspis is present.  Probably best to keep grain mites under control by other means, but this isn't always easy to do in certain situations.

I have them circulating my enclosures, never seem to die out, between grain mites, fungus gnats and the several springtail species in my enclosures, they always have food available, and seem to cycle between crashes and booms in my collection.