Outside run finished for this year

[PhilBen]

Hi today I have finished the outside run, that is until next year and i get some more ideas. Shelly and Skippy seem to love the fly over and going over then returning via the bottom entrance. There is a poly carbonate roof in front of their house to help with heat during colder days.

[PhilBen]

another pic

[Nina]

How super is that! I absolutely love your flyover -- and I can see that the tortoises love it too. It's sometimes hard to convince people that tortoises get bored and lethargic when they aren't in stimulating environments, but you've created a great looking enclosure with all sorts of interest, and I can see that you're tortoises are really enjoying it. They like nothing better than to climb up something or underneath something else. For years I had one of those large curved roof tiles that formed a hill for mine to climb over and a tunnel to walk through, and they loved it.

Nina
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[PhilBen]

Thanks nina, i did it yesterday and as soon as i put them in, they kept going over the top and out via the bottom. its nice we have had some good weather so they could enjoy it. Hope you are well

[PhilBen]

Hi Nina, have you got any suggestions for getting rid of fruit fly. I have tried cider vinegar, wood lice nothing seems to work ?

[Nina]

Are you sure that they aren't fungas gnats and not fruit flies? Where are they? If they are around the plants in your tortoise table or any other potted plants indoors then they are almost certainly fungas gnats (really tiny little black things -- they are even smaller than fruit flies). They are harmless and lay their eggs in dampish soil but are really irritating and I get them every now and then.

The best way to get rid of them (and I think it would work for fruit flies too) is to get one of those sticky fly paper things and hang it above your table or the area where they are. I buy little rolls like this https://tinyurl.com/2p8pwatj (they look like an old fashioned roll of film and you pull them out to the length you want) or there are these https://tinyurl.com/5bwvw7f5 Those links are just ones I got off the internet, but you can buy them at lots of places like Homebase, any ironmonger. I used to get these at Homebase, as they have decorative patterns on the reverse side, but it looks like the are out of stock now https://www.homebase.co.uk/rentokil-fly ... 06204.html Anyway, the sticky paper catches them really well and then after a little while they disappear because you've trapped them before they have a chance to lay more eggs so no more babies are born. And the good thing is they have no harmful ingredients (that could also affect the tortoises) -- just very sticky!

Just make sure that it is hanging down close to where they are, but high enough above the table so that your tortoises can't come into contact with it -- or they will stick to it.

Nina

[PhilBen]

Thanks nina, will give them a go

[lin]

Or you could try the sundew carnivorous plants Phil, Drosera species. They are amazing for those little flies and if you just place a few around the top of your enclosure I’m sure it will do the trick and you will never get it stuck in your hair like a flypaper
They are easy to grow and if you keep one to flower they will seed and grow many more.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/housep ... plants.htm
Lin

[PhilBen]

could not get them locally, so ordered online. In the mean time using the ones below

[Nina]

Has your sticky paper caught any yet?

Nina

[PhilBen]

yes loads, I bought them a while ago, you get a free little spade that i use for the poop scoop. They are on ebay
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/385603954508 ... media=COPY

[Nina]

That looks like a good deal! I just looked up Fungus Gnats on the Royal Horticultural Society website and here is what they say: https://www.rhs.org.uk/biodiversity/fungus-gnats It's encouraging that they recommend the yellow sticky paper too.

Nina

[PhilBen]

They do seem to work. Thanks for your help

[ShelledDreamer10]

Amazing looking enclosure!

[PhilBen]

Thank you