Culturing springtails of the Collembolla class can be very easy and rewarding. It is always advisable for dart frog keepers to have a few producing cultures of these on hand, both for “seeding” new vivariums, as well as feeding young froglets that are too small to accept fruit flies.
A newly morphed O. Pumilio froglet searching for microfauna.
There are many different approaches to culturing these arthropods, but this post will focus on the methods that have worked best for us in the past.
Culturing container:
Virtually any container with a water-tight bottom can be used for this purpose. We prefer 6.5 qt sweater boxes for our primary cultures, and 16 oz. deli cups as temporary cultures. These are not ventilated other than occasionally opening the lid to feed or remove springtails.
Substrate:
There are many appropriate substrates that can be utilized, but the most hassle-free choice for us has been coconut husk chips. They are naturally anti-fungal, and don’t become over saturated like a finer substrate can. The containers are filled halfway with damp chips mixed with Hydroton, and 1/2″-1″ of water is constantly maintained at the bottom.
Diet:
Springtails are not picky eaters, and will accept most types of vegetable scraps, rice, or pasta. We generally only feed flake fish food and couscous. An acceptable portion of either would be about 2 tsp. per week for a thriving sweater box culture. Care should be taken to avoid overfeeding, because although springs will readily devour many types of mold and fungus, overabundance of either in their small container can easily institute a culture crash.
Several adults consuming a soggy piece of fish food.
Feeding out:
Due to their tiny size, springtails float on the surface of water. This trait can be exploited when attempting to remove the springs from their culture for feedings. Simply tilt the culture toward one corner and pour off any present springtails into a feeding cup, or directly into your animal’s enclosure. Use caution to prevent the substrate from pouring out, and always try to leave at least 50% of the viable population in your culture. This will ensure that your springtails will maintain a continuous production rate. It is also advisable to replace any water that has been drained out of the culture.
Pouring out some springs for a feeding.
Precautions:
Aside from overfeeding, springtails do not tolerate drying out, or extreme temperatures. Cultures can also be attacked by various mite species, which can cause a substantial drop in production or even a complete crash. For this reason, we like to keep cultures on miticidal paper towels, and keep the area around the cultures as clean as possible.
