In wintertime there's a good alternative
for sweep netting. The hollow stem of the Giant hogweed
Hogweed is 2-4 inches in diameter, containing huge amounts
of hibernating insects. The thick stem is covered with
coarse hairs, and the stem contains a burning liquid,
when it contacts skin and reacts with light it induces
large blisters on the skin, for this reason :use gloves
when collecting hogweed stems.
This hollow stem contains an large amount of spiders and
flies, seeking shelter for wintercold.
An easy alternativ
light trap as bugcatcher
In spring and summer one can catch insects by
using a bugcatcher. Place a bucket under a lamp,
a torch lite. There must be a hole in that bucket,
preventing the escape of the bugs.Flying nocturnal
insects are irrestable attracted by a lamp that
shines in the night. In this way , you easely collect
more flying bugs then you need. This bugcatcher is
an easy and cheap way for providing the living food
for frogs and reptiles.
Light trap
A Berlese funnel trap is easely made by yourself : it produces
heat and light and in this way drive the springtails and other
soil creatures out of the leaves. Collembola or Springtails, white worms,
Centipedes and so on are collected this way.
They prefer moist, cool conditions and rarely leave the cover of dead leaves.
These animals escape through the sieve and fall into the basket
were they can be collected.
Collecting meadow plankton
Sweep netting is a summer activity collecting insects as a food
for terraria animals. Basic equipment for sweep netting is a fine net,
that has to be strong and light and a jar.
In this way one can catch butterflies, moths, dragonflies, wasps, flies
and other bugs. If there are enough inects in the net, give it a
strong sweep through the air to make the insects fall to the bottom.
Then twist the net above the clump in the bottom ,put everything in a jar,
but first remove spiders and wasps and foliage.
Don't collect insects near motorways and near places where pestcides are used.
sweep netting for living food
The net contains a lot of different insects like dragonflies, grashoppers, crickets, mosquitos, spiders
moths, beetles, wesps and this content changes with the season
Frogs, salamander, and reptiles really love it, and they live longer,
and produce more offspring. The reason for this is not
clear , there may be more then one reason. As the collected insects
contain the right ingredients there is no need fot adding
supplemenmts ,like vitamines or calcium etc
Store the jats with insects in the fridge, it
will keep youre food good for some days.
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