Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I was thinking about a couple of relatives having a problem with this fast growing pest. during the rains they come like a plague and then a couple of days later they mostly disappear but sometimes they like to stick around especially when the weather's still cool.

I would also like to be able to provide my own fish feed without having to keep buying it from the shop, I think it defeats the purpose of self-sufficiency if I have to buy or draw anything from outside the home to feed into my AP.

anyway, back on the Black Port Millies; googling, I found that they secret this yellowish poison that kinda keeps predators away, but what predators?! and would this secretion hurt the fish? or the cycled system for that matter?

Has anyone thought of using the millies as food? and what results? I'm kinda thinking about taking a couple of my rellie's millies and feeding my goldfish comets but I haven't the guts. Anyone tried yet?

Gah the title is supposed to be "Black Portuguese millipedes", for some reason it didn't show up properly?!

I think there was a thread on this last year?

I'd be interested to know that too, I get them in plague proportions, some end up in the pond but its hard to tell if the goldies eat them. Suppose I could chuck some in just before feeding time, Lawnmower seems to eat anything.

I cant find the thread, and its work time

Mm all I could find was this from Himzo's system.

"They actually look quite fine apart from the fact that they are dead.

i.e. no discolouration or dryness of the skin,

I did have some millipedes drop into the pond, just wondering if they may have tried to eat these though there is no sign of the other fish eating them. will be doing a water change just in case.

They have slowed down on feeding as well so am wondering if the sudden change in our weather has had an effect. we recently had a strech of 15 days of 35ºC + weather and it has been in the high teens and low twenties since then."

But it appears there were other reasons for the deaths.

Black millipedes are a real pest - choocks will eat them - one or two - ok; if they eat something like 10 or 15 per day - it will give them black diarrhoea & they wont eat any for weeks.
I would NOT recommend them for fish food - have you squashed one and smelt it? awful smell.........
heka

Whoops , just chucked 10 in, about four sank the rest floated.
The goldies ignored them for a couple of minutes then smack they dissapeared. Can't tell if they spit them out, ponds a bit murky. Will see how things go.

My chooks must have cast iron gizzards, as they don't seem to get effected by them. Mind you they also don't get out as much these days, because they found where the nieghbours grow their veggies.



Have to agree here. remember the term "you are what you eat", think of the flavour of the millipedes spread through your fish...all I can say is

Himzo

Himzo....I suppose you have heard some gardening 'gurus' recommend nematodes - especially bred - to be put in compost heaps & places where millipedes congregate. Millipedes will eat them. The nematodes apparently multiply inside the millipedes gut - and eat them inside out! I have never tried them. I wonder - what would these nematodes do to the choocks gut? etc.
heka

Different story with ducks......they seem to be able to digest the millrpedes easely - no ill effects.
heka

Good point. I have thought about it, but never got around to doing anything about it. I will have to look into the effects on chooks before doing so.

I don't know about you but they seem worse then ever this year at our place.

Himzo.

my rellies are saying the same, they say that every year, it gets 30% worse than the previous year and no-one seems to know how to get rid of them other than squishing or calling the pest controller. apparently they like to live in cold dark underground spots so if you have a lot of little places like that, then you'll have the millies when the rains come.

hmm duck... I'll suggest and see what they say

Yeah.......plenty around here - or should I say ....millions. They are hiding under anything the can crawl under and wait for the next rain to breed
Re millipedes in the garden - ducks are very good in finding/eating them. Good insect controllers in general. I have had
KakhiCampell ducks in the past. Now I have Pekin ducks - only 4 weeks old - still got their fluffy feathers. I will have them in the duck pond soon (still got to work on the pumping/solid lifting stand pipe, autosyhpon etc).
If you don't have any pets/chooks/ducks to worry about use BAYSOL (BAYER) blue snail&slug pellets work 100% on slug/snail/millipedes. I usually place 2-3 pellets under stones or anything where they hide under - works excellent.
Those pellets are very efficient - so use them sparingly.......and put some more in about 4 weeks.
heka

I'm amazed how quickly they spread around the country! ! Smart buggers - crawl up on cars/trailers/caravans/trucks........
hitch a ride - drop off and breed
Can anybody remember when they "arrived" at their place
They got here about '95 - '96