Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Interesting observation today on our Biopod. I took the lid off and noticed that someone had poured a dark substance over the contents of our Biopod, Don't know why? Anyway yesterday there wasn't anything in the bucket and today there were about 2 dozen dark coloured pupae. I am wondering if the dark liquid was from the worm farm? Shall have to check with the person responsible, who ever it was. Anyway I wonder if it caused them to mature early and leave the pod, as they were not very big.
I also found quite a few in the worm farm.
And yes it is very sad when we get excited about flies, but at least we are not alone
Nice observation and photo Peter.
How's your maggots Nocky?

Thanks Faye. None of the lavae you donated have hatched yet from what I can see but I live in hope.

Congrats Peter

I'm still plugging away with the milk. I have maggots in mine, but I'm pretty sure they're blowfly maggots as that's what I've seen hanging around. The upside is that some of these still seem to go for a walk and end up in the harvest container - and the Western Minnows and Pygmy Perch seem to enjoy them.

Nocky - you can have my job if you want it. It's sole redeeeming feature is that it pays the bills. Maybe Joel & Faye will offer me a job when I finish my Aquaculture Cert II.

Maggots are still wriggling faye, but cold weather and rain maybe not so good for them, good stuff Peter, I actually made hole bigger in top of my pod as well, so maybe that helped, yep thanks for the Tip Mr O

Looks like the milk is finally working - haven't checked the biopod for 3 days but had a quick look in the harvest bucket this morning before work and found the below

Finally - I'm in the club ! Now I gotta wait for some pupae to self harvest.

I gather the pupa made it to the bucket and then hatched, let it be free, go forth and do what BSF are meant to do, breed. Woohoo

Faye - not sure on that. It's only three days since I checked it and there was nothing there then. Three days seems a little fast and there was no evidence of pupae casing in the little bucket with the flys.

I was assuming the flys had got into the biopod, done their thing, and then the exit they chose was through the hose down to the little harvest bucket.

Bump

Bumping for?

Faye - she was online at the time - I'll PM instead

weather turned to crap and maggots appear to have drown, had one pupae in the harvest pod, BSF are harder to grow than trout

Well, you're still in front of me - though they do now seem to have found the pod, so, with fingers crossed, it should now only be a matter of time.

I have *finally* seen BSF larvae in my home made biopod.

They are the real thing - going black and all.

Took me 3 weeks to find em - and the normal fly maggots outnumber em immensely.

Advice? Patience - 3 weeks minimum?

AJ, from what Faye and EB have told me, the BSF will eventually drive the other flies/maggots out and take over. They use pheromones to do this apparently.

As to how long that takes, I'm guessing each individual case is different.

Congrats on finding the larvae though

Not sure what happened yesterday with the pod - there was suddenly about 30 house/blow fly maggots in the little harvest bucket. Never been more than 2 or 3 before.

BSF maggots driving normal maggots away ????

The Western Minnows and coupla goldfish loved 'em. Presumably the Western Pygmy Perch did too, but you can never see the little buggers.