Moths in aviaries

[anzac]

I just hate this time of spring, the moths are in full force in my aviaries, probably from the seed. They fly into the water every day and foul the water and I mean they load the water. I have the water drip feeder bottles and they just cram the bottom rim. I clean it out when I get home but by the next day they are all back floating dead in there. I thought I had escaped it with the turks but they are invading their water as well. I tried the dish system but that gave them even more water to float in and die. Does anyone else have this problem or suggestions to get rid of them?

[avinet]

Must be a WA thing - I've never had a moth problem in my aviaries.

Are they the usual seed moth or a different moth?

One reason I don't have a problem is I have a pair of Cuban Finches in my main aviary - any moth or other small flying insect is quickly eaten by them.

So my suggestion is to get a pair of Cuban Finches and put them in the aviary - they are quite compatible with cockatiels and other small parrots. Only problem with them is they are incredibly quick and escape is a real threat when you go into the aviary unless you have a safety porch. If you don't have a safety porch then a slower pair such as Ruddies (also called African Firetails), St Helenas or Cordon Blue might be a better insect eating choice.

cheers,

Mike

[anzac]

Thanks as always Mike It is so annoying each year at this time. I have fully cleaned the cage out, removed all birds, sprayed down walls with insect surface spray and they still survive. Unfortunately I don't have a safety door and even the calmer finches I have tried in there have flown out. Plus with the amount of moths in there I'd need an aviary full of finches! The canary aviary suffers the most now followed by the turk's aviary. I have thought of suspending moth balls in bags but worry about chewing but I don't think the canaries would chew, not so sure about the turks

[meandem]

Might be a west thing? So it is every year? We certainly don't get a lot of them here, but we get the occassional one, but like Mike, I have finches.

What about hanging those mothball cages around your aviary? You can buy them in the supermarket. I wouldn't put them where the birds could get access to them, but hang them close by.

[anzac]

Sigh by the sounds of it, must be a west thing The eggs obviously hatch around now and it lasts for months, and yes it is every year. Been Googling moths in aviaries and it comes up with other bird forums and they think it's next to impossible to get rid off once they are in and I can only concur I'll have to rig up some mothball contraption I think as they are particularly bad this year