Fruit flies are great food for many fish, lizards and frogs. You can either buy commercially prepared media in which to grow them, or make your own. Making your own is much more affordable. Most ingredients can be found at your local grocery store, which also eliminates waiting to receive your media ordered online. You can either make a large batch of media to have on hand at all times, or make individual batches as needed.
What exactly is “media”? Media is basically the hobbyist’s term for the multipurpose “stuff” on which adult and larval fruit flies feed, and in which adult fruit flies lay their eggs. There are many different recipes for media, some quite involved, some more expensive than others, some with more odor, and some that perform better than others. This recipe I’ve created and used for years is one that combines the best of all worlds- inexpensive, low-odor, high productivity of flies, and readily available ingredients.
Recipe:
1/4 c. Mashed Potato Flakes- choose the least expensive brand you can find
1 T. Powdered Sugar
1 T. Brewer’s Yeast (optional)
Packet of Dry Active Yeast
1/4 c. white vinegar
1/4 c. hot water
Once you gather your ingredients together, mix the Mashed Potato Flakes, Powdered Sugar, and Brewer’s Yeast in a large bowl. The potato flakes will expand when they absorb water, so allow for that when choosing your mixing bowl.
Mix together the vinegar and water in a measuring cup, and slowly add to dry ingredients, stirring as you add it. Let stand for a minute so the media can absorb the water. The media should be the consistency of creamy peanut butter.
If the media is still too dry and crumbly, keep adding small amounts of water and vinegar until it reaches a nice soft consistency, without being soupy. If you do add too much water, add some extra potato flakes in 1 T. increments until the media is stiff enough.
Scoop media into culture containers, and add some grains of the dry active yeast on top of the media. You’re now ready to add excelsior, fruit flies, and snap on the lid.
You may wonder why each of the ingredients is used. Potato flakes offer carbohydrates in an easily stored, inexpensive form. Powdered Sugar is a more intense carb, helping the cultures grow quickly and produce more. Brewer’s Yeast is a great source of protein. Dry Yeast is preferred by adult flies, and helps them to live longer and produce more. Vinegar is used to prevent growth of mold in cultures.
If you find your cultures become too soupy after a few weeks, you’ll want to make them drier at the start. If you find they dry out too quickly, add a little more moisture at the start. It is better, however, if your home is very dry, to mist them with water during their production that to start with a soupy mix.
If you’re making a large batch of media to store, change the measurements to:
4 c. Potato flakes
1 c. Powdered Sugar
1 c. Brewers Yeast
Mix the Vinegar and water as needed when you are ready to make a culture
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