Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Here in the UK we don't have Black Soldier Flies (pity really, they look so useful). But we do have a huge variety of flies and insects of other sorts. But the problem is how to breed them. Or catch them.

Unless you want to go into the correct breeding environment for breeding maggots and other stuff, which I imagine is quite tricky. (Never done it myself, but I'm guessing it's not so easy). Then you may want to look into catching them. Thats where this handy fly trap comes in...

http://lifehacker.com/5571662/build-the ... ree-summer

Now I know what I'm building to feed my fishes. Wonder if it could be built so the dead flies fall down to the water level? Keep the fishies fed.

I know of any number of commercial fish farms that have fly zappers over the water, and several greenhouse aquaponics operations.

It works.

I saw that and thought the same thing! Didn't have time to post it here, though. Cheers for posting it first! Did you read through the comments? Looks like you could do smaller 1 gallon size jugs as well. I've got helpers in my house that like catching em, so I don't have a problem like they do.

Could you have the bottom slanted down with a pipe leading to the water? If they died, they be blown down into the hole and then the fish could get them?

I get a plastic drinks bottle put 4 holes in just down from the neck and put in some water and a few prawn heads,it works well.Flys can get in but cant get out

As for attracting maggots for your fish a small floating raft with some rotting meat where the maggots fell in the water.You would need some mesh or something to hold the meat and it would have to be cheaper than buying the equivalent in fish food.

I would imagine a floating solar light would also attract night flying insects that would occasionally drop in the water and provide a free feed

Many people in the past have done a basket of some sort hanging over the fish tank with something rotting to attract the flies to lay eggs and the maggots when they are ready to pupate climb out of the rotting stuff and fall into the tank as fish food. Some people just use a little milk soaked bread as the attractant.

I've got bug zappers, it's kinda important to find the most "open" zapper you can so the bug will fall to the fish rather than building up in the zapper.

Others use a light and a fan, When the bugs fly to the light the fan blowing at the right angel tends to knock the bugs onto the water.

And then there are specially made fish feeding bug lights that have a little spinning whip under the light to knock the bugs down and feed the fish.

Around here I ave had some trouble with beetle parts blocking up small holes in plumbing feeds when feeding by bug zapper. So I've had to add a screen over the pump intake in the systems that pump directly from the fish tanks.

Maggot growing is easy.
Shoot some medium sized game.
Eat it for dinner.
Fold the skin in half fur out.
Come back a week later - open - scrape the maggots off - refold.
It's that easy, and due to the fact that it's 'fur out' it tends to reduce the smell as opposed to a hanging chicken carcass over the tank.

Was only thinking last night that the swirl filter would make a nice spot to put a light over. It skims the surface so a screen can be set up to keep anything too large out of the tank. The FT is kept dark. And being under cover I don't have to worry about rain. Any insects that sink can be taken out with the solids. Will set up a small light and see how it goes.

i think its called a "bug slugger" quite popular off fishing docks as a fish attractor

Learn all kinds of strange things on these forums.

I've seen a couple of other tricks for attracting bugs to feed chickens with, they'd probably work for fish, too.

One is that yellow pheromone trap for Japanese beetles. If you cut a hole in the bottom of the sack, it turns into a beetle funnel. You can even attach a tube to direct the beetles where you want them.

Another is acorns. If you collect acorns off the ground in the fall, about half of them will have acorn worms in them. Hang them in a mesh bag over the tank, and the worms will crawl out and fall in the water. They look a lot like maggots, but without the smell.

I've used a length of PVC with fruit fly bait in the top and the bottom of the PVC going into the water. The fish like fruit fly.

can you post a pic of it Dufflight

plus one
wouldn't mid a pick of a bug slugger too

Bug slugger

http://www.memphisnet.net/category/feeders_slug

another pic of bug slugger