Newsgroups: sci.bio
Path: utzoo!rising
From: rising@utzoo.uucp (Jim Rising)
Subject: fruit flies
Message-ID: <1988Nov14.150826.22559@utzoo.uucp>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
Date: Mon, 14 Nov 88 15:08:26 GMT

I've used wingless fruit flies to feed my fish for years, and they are
no problem.  There are (at least) two recessive mutants, vestigial (vg)
and curly wing (cy) that cannot fly--at any temp, so far as I know.
If you are at a university, you can probably get a starter colony
of one or the other from the department of genetics.

I raise mine in "Formula 4-24 Instant Drosophila Medium" which I buy
from Carolina Biological Supply Co., 2700 York Road, Burlington, N.
C. 27215, or Box 187, Gladstone, Oregon 97027.  This is probably a
relatively expensive way to do it, but one bag will last years, and it
is really easy to work with.  The medium requires no cooking, and looks
more or less like Pablum.

I raise mine in Drosophila bottles, which are wide-mouthed bottles of
about 5 oz capacity.  Use a porous sponge stopper, so that there is 
air circulation, but the flies cannot escape.
I would think that the smaller vials (.16 guage vials) would be too
small to be of much use for raising fish food.

Good Luck,

Jim Rising
-- 
Name:     Jim Rising
Mail:     Dept. Zoology, Univ. Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada    M5S 1A1
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