Little black bugs in water-any ideas?

LilRalphieRoosmama

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12 Years
Oct 15, 2007
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Elyria, OH
I always have two plastic milk jugs filled with water near my coop. Yesterday morning then again today, the jugs were CRAWLING with these tiny little black bugs with little antennas. They were climbing to the jug opening and drowning in the water - the surface of the water was black! These bugs are so tiny - like little black dots - and don't appear to have wings. I can't tell if they jumped when I touched them or if they just fell off the jug. They aren't fleas; I know what those look like. Could these be some sort of chicken mite or something? I think they only have 6 legs. Already checked out whatsthatbug.com so thought I'd see if anybody else has seen these near their chickens. Thanks!
 
Ive never seen anything like that. I do get a lot of pillbugs around my waterer.

It is spring and these bugs could be going threw a mass hatching. I would think its the water they are after.

If I where you I would put some DE around where the waterer sits on the ground to keep them away from the water.
 
If this is what you have they are pillbugs. Although they are not insects and are closely related to crayfish, lobsters and crabs. I feed em to the older chicks because they are just full of nice juicy calcium! I've considered growing them in shoeboxes for chickie snacks!

pill_bugs_3_comp.jpg
 
No, that's not it. These are really tiny - like the size of spider mites or fleas. Hopefully it was just a hatching thing because today I didn't see anymore.
 
sounds like it could be springtails...look them up. I know they always come out around here when it rains. I think they like moisture and they are really tiny. just a thought...
 
I made the mistake of setting my water mug on the ground while we were working outside recently. When I picked it up again, it had loads of tiny grey insects in it, shaped like thrips. Not sure that's what they were, but they sure wanted my water. I contemplated drinking it for the extra protein and other nutrients in them, but dumped it instead.
 
Quote: I looked up springtails, and I have found massive clusters of them floating in my chicken's water. Do they cause any issues for chickens? Or are they harmless? Is there a way to get rid of them?
 

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