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Full Version: Which strain of ff is most productive for you ?
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Shaz and i are doing pretty well I guess with this froggy lark,and loving it. Because of all the little frogs about I have had an inclination to get in another strain of ff,almost as a failsafe,i guess i'm getting paranoid in my old age :lol:
I'm guessing most folks will say mels over there as the best producer,but i'm interested to see which strains varieties are your favourites,i might just be able to track them down here.

We currently have hydei and also a wingless golden mel.So folks which is your favourite most productive FF

thanks and regards from blighty,
Stu
Turkish Gliders easily hands down.
ChrisK Wrote:Turkish Gliders easily hands down.

+1 (me too).
Chris Phil thanks thats a great start,I'll start hunting,cutlure as per our mels?
thanks
Stu
Yeah, you just need to keep a closer eye on them when feeding them out because they jump and fly a couple of inches, they climb a lot more than melanos too so they escape the tanks a lot more.
i myself like the golden hydei or golden mels. easier for my frogs to see them. turkish gliders cycle pretty fast from maggot to adult. that is the one good thing.
For melanos, I really like turkish gliders. Develop quickly, are very productive (see photo), and frogs seem to prefer hunting them (maybe the way they move). For hydei I really like goldens. The blacks are ok too, but goldens seem to be better producers (and easier to feed out). I'm culturing the ABG strain of wingless melanos; so far they are incredibly productive and seem to develop more quickly than my other wingless melanos (maybe by 2 days)...they are well on their way to becoming my favorite feeder overall, but I haven't had them long enough to be sure.
ChrisK Wrote:Yeah, you just need to keep a closer eye on them when feeding them out because they jump and fly a couple of inches, they climb a lot more than melanos too so they escape the tanks a lot more.

Ha thats shaz's job :lol: , but,its good to make her life challenging :lol:
these euro vivs are actually pretty good at holding ff Chris,you guys all need to be using them
thanks for the tips
Stu
fieldsmith Wrote:For melanos, I really like turkish gliders. Develop quickly, are very productive (see photo), and frogs seem to prefer hunting them (maybe the way they move). For hydei I really like goldens. The blacks are ok too, but goldens seem to be better producers (and easier to feed out). I'm culturing the ABG strain of wingless melanos; so far they are incredibly productive and seem to develop more quickly than my other wingless melanos (maybe by 2 days)...they are well on their way to becoming my favorite feeder overall, but I haven't had them long enough to be sure.
Hey Field ya good,mate? i'm running a paralell thread over here,i've also had a recommendation for golden hydie here aswell,might be something to look into.That said i think really I'm after another strain of melo, as i'm thinking more versitile for the froglets.Interesting observation on the turks,i like to make it as interesting as possible for the frogs so,I think if there are any here they might be the ff to fullfill our needs. We are real busy now with the frogs
much thanks
Stu
fieldsmith Wrote:I'm culturing the ABG strain of wingless melanos; so far they are incredibly productive and seem to develop more quickly than my other wingless melanos (maybe by 2 days)....

Can you recommend a vendor for the ABG strain? I need some new starter cultures... I've been culturing wingless melanos from Josh's Frogs, and recently made a rookie mistake -- I ran short one week and picked up a jar of flies from Petco, and then used it (along with my Josh's strain) to make up new cultures that week -- and ended up with fully flighted fruit flies :-) I've ditched that week's cultures (and won't ever do that again), but I'd like to start a new set of cultures from a good productive new source.

Thanks!
Hey Stu, I imagine a big part to play on this is the culture medium you opt to use. I'm not convinced that the Turkish gliders are the most productive, it may just be that they're the most active, they definitely seem to have lots more energy than other cultures. Personally I won't culture them, the wingless and heidei are enough for the Mrs.

Culture medium does have a big part you play in my opinion, I was pretty disappointed with my Heidi's until I began using repashy now their booming and reproducing quicker than with my own home made medium.

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phelsumaman Wrote:Hey Stu, I imagine a big part to play on this is the culture medium you opt to use. I'm not convinced that the Turkish gliders are the most productive, it may just be that they're the most active, they definitely seem to have lots more energy than other cultures. Personally I won't culture them, the wingless and heidei are enough for the Mrs.

Culture medium does have a big part you play in my opinion, I was pretty disappointed with my Heidi's until I began using repashy now their booming and reproducing quicker than with my own home made medium.

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hey bro ya good mate
i'm sure your point is very valid Ben,we are producing plenty of flies....hmm but plenty of froglets too :lol: We trialed the repashy and didn't do much better than our usual media,so have taken to adding abit to each culture ,maybe getting the best of both worlds.But we're kind of degressing slightly,although i really appreciate the imput. I want us to have something else going on,not really being used or fed alot just building numbers for a while. It might be my usual paranoia,Ben, or more probably that be "prepared ethos",in case some sudden crash befalls us....a backup plan if you like .Hence getting as much imput as possible on what to try and source.Ha i don't really like bringing new cultures here mate,as you know...we always seem to get some little freebee aswell. Where have you been sourcing your starter cultures Ben?
Hmm i bet Shaz will love the turks then mate,she's so good with the flies maybe she needs a challenge :lol: ,i best not show her this
hope the trivs are doing well
Best
Stu
Hey Stu,
Im good thanks, been a challenging few months but getting there, find it really intersting how differnt people have such wildly different results with basically the same flies and the same medium, its always good to be prepared (as the scouts say!).

As I said I dont breed the turkish gliders, my friend Cam does for his young mantids - he keeps all the main types of FFs. I can only really go on what I have seen. All that I have had from him are mite free and are proven lines which have produced well for many generations (of FFs that is!). I did also source some wingless from a chap on DW which were also excellent.

Whatever you do I would keep any new culture seperate from your existing ones for a couple of months just to be sure that there are no unwated hitchikers along with them.

Trivs are well and growing fast - its about time you popped down to mine for a visit
Ben
phelsumaman Wrote:Hey Stu,
Im good thanks, been a challenging few months but getting there, find it really intersting how differnt people have such wildly different results with basically the same flies and the same medium, its always good to be prepared (as the scouts say!).

As I said I dont breed the turkish gliders, my friend Cam does for his young mantids - he keeps all the main types of FFs. I can only really go on what I have seen. All that I have had from him are mite free and are proven lines which have produced well for many generations (of FFs that is!). I did also source some wingless from a chap on DW which were also excellent.

Whatever you do I would keep any new culture seperate from your existing ones for a couple of months just to be sure that there are no unwated hitchikers along with them.

Trivs are well and growing fast - its about time you popped down to mine for a visit
Ben

i have good Ideas of how Hard Ben,but time will heal my friend...the memories are always there.
Its these variables Ben each and every set up is uniquely different,frogs, cultures,the whole shebang. Tis the appliance of science my freind,Ben I'll pm you shortly my internet is slightly unco-operative at the moment.
:lol: ha ha i was a sea sprout :oops: ,so yup i do try to be prepared,its knowing what to be prepared for here Ben....that's where the art is :lol:
Again yes i do need to keep them away from the others,i have a cunning plan,which might get us where i want for the summer at least
thanks mate
take care bro I'll catch up soon
best
Stu
Hey Stu,

I never thought I'd say this, but Hydei are now my best producing fly. I gave them a generous amount of medium and they just keep coming and coming... Gliders are next on the list now.

Cheers
For me, in my own experience it really depends on the season. It seems that my hydei produce better in the winter and the cooler months, the melanos produce better in the summer for me.
Rusty_Shackleford Wrote:For me, in my own experience it really depends on the season. It seems that my hydei produce better in the winter and the cooler months, the melanos produce better in the summer for me.
Funny, the exact opposite for me. No wonder there's 101 different ways to do things.
frogfreak Wrote:Hey Stu,

I never thought I'd say this, but Hydei are now my best producing fly. I gave them a generous amount of medium and they just keep coming and coming... Gliders are next on the list now.

Cheers

Hello mate goddamit i wish you were closer,yeah we've always done well with hydie, Shaz has somehow got her special little hydie going well too,although how she made that happen god knows,they all come from one pot bought......ages ago,still churning out the goods week in week out.
And to jon as well you both made me smile with the above opposite results,thanks for the imput guys i hope your both good
regards
Stu