Parisites?

[FlytrapGurl]

I fed my VFT a small cricket three days ago. Today I noticed very tiny, almost microscopic black bugs on the lip of the trap with the cricket inside. They don't seem to be harming the plant; they seem to be trying to get at the cricket. They are only on that one trap. What should I do

 

[cephalotus88]

are they some what long or small tiny black bugs that can jump high? they do no harm, but you could get rid of em by holding the pot upside down and misting the heck out of the leaves, so the bugs will fall.

 

[chinski000]

yeah i have the little black bugs i think they just feed of the dew that all carnivorious plants make so they dont really harm the plant

 

[havron]

My lowland Nepenthes have these little black bugs with tails that raise up into the air. I don't know what they are.

 

[FlytrapGurl]

No, they don't jump. They are plain looking and they crawl very slowly.

 

[unknownclown]

It sounds like you have aphids.

Dunk the plant for a day or two in water or find a safe pesticide to use Orthene works pretty good.

 

[Mike King]

Dear flytrapgurl,
Are they still on 1 leaf or are they now on the others?
It doesn't sound like they are aphids to me (green and definately not almost microscopic!). Are there any other symptoms?

 

[steveo]

I'd like to suggest that you are getting those beetles that feast on insect exoskeletons--sorry, can't remember the name, but they are ubiquitous. These are the bane of museums and insect collectors everywhere. They shouldn't hurt plants--if they grow and are a little clumsy, they might even provide a meal for the plant!

Is the skeleton starting to look "eaten?" They will make quick work of it.

 

[wickedthistle]

I actually had similar little black bugs on my aloe plant, potted right next to my VFTs. They grew up to be gnats of some sort, which my VFT happily fed from. However, they multiplied fast (30+) and became a problem. To get rid of them, I flooded the soil on top and let the little buggers float out of the pot. Also rinsed off the bottom holder of standing water where they also hang out. Left the plants outside for two days. That got rid of most of them, I had to repeat this twice.