General Information:

Drosophila hydei is the second relevant species in terraristics. It grows with about 3 to 4 mm slightly larger than the Drosophila melanogaster. But the development time clearly increases – as always it is strongly temperature-dependent. Approximately a generation sequence of about 3 weeks can be expected.

Breeding:

The breeding of these animals is very simple and compared to other animals very inexpensive. I use washable glass containers or plastic containers of 500-1000 ml content for the breeding. I then fill in the breeding substrate approx. 3 cm high. As a running space I use substrate wood wool, egg cartons, crumpled paper or paper strips from the shredder. Usually I occupied the new breeding boxes with 20-40 flies, so that a fast larvae stocking occurs. I do not heat the fruit fly breeding extra but keep it at normal room temperature.

So you should keep the breeding preparations a bit warmer and the containers with the hatched animals a bit cooler to increase the life span. It is best to observe the laying of the eggs shortly after the cultures have started, when the larvae do not disturb yet. The eggs are preferably laid on the surface of the sutrate ground. The development time depends on the temperature.

During larval development, the animals moult twice. The length of the animals increases. The larvae dig themselves into the ground. To pupate, they usually leave surface and migrate up the wall of the breeding tank.

Drosophila hydei

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Substrate Mush:

Drosophila larvae feed on yeasts. The substrate must offer favourable growth conditions for yeast fungi. It should be solid so that nothing flows out when the vessel is turned around. However, the larvae must be able to drill into the substrate.

Recipe for a breeding container in summer:

1 cube baker’s yeast (1 packet dry yeast)
2 teaspoons sugar
100 ml fruit vinegar (6 tablespoons)
40 g oat flakes (3 heaped teaspoons)
Ingredients for a breeding container in winter:
1 cube of baker’s yeast (1 packet of dry yeast)
1 tablespoon sugar
135ml vinegar (8 tablespoons)
1 bag mashed potatoes
Water (half of the liquid indicated on the packaging)
You don’t need an antifungal like Nipagin because the amount of vinegar is very high. The yeast can also be left out, because there are yeast cells at the feet of the breeding flies. This, however, delays the breeding considerably. Due to the presence of yeast it must be clear to everyone that a completely smellless breeding is not possible. In the beginning the smell of vinegar predominates. The longer the breeding period, the more unpleasant the smell of the substrate becomes.
Mites are the biggest problem in Drosophila breeding. Therefore I recommend to take as many animals as possible when vaccinating the new breeding containers. This increases the number of larvae, and due to their strong circulation in the breeding broth, the reproduction of the mites is reduced. In addition, the breeding boxes can be permanently placed in a water bath. This prevents on the one hand the mites from migrating from one cup to the other and on the other hand the escaping of the cut fruit flies into the whole flat.

Feeding other Animals with Drosophilas:

Of course you could go to the wardrobe of your wife or girlfriend to “borrow” a pair of tights. With this you can build many bridges from the breeding cup to the insectarium. However, mine would usually still break out and tights are much too expensive in the long run, especially if you get the wrong ones. The resulting trouble with the opposite sex can easily be avoided by simply putting the breeding cups in the fridge for a few minutes. Then you can open the can, knock the animals out and even dust them with a vitamin preparation (Korvimin ZVT). The fruit flies are in a cold state for a short time that does not harm them, their eggs or larvae.

Drosophila hydei

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