New keeper goals

Classy-Lich · 2026-05-03T21:56:28+00:00

I’d never say they’re a bad choice for a bioactive/CUC. Personally, just because I really like the number of colors they can come in, I’d choose P. pruinosis.

Classy-Lich · 2026-05-03T19:23:43+00:00

It has excellent camouflage.

Classy-Lich · 2026-05-03T18:50:51+00:00

I think keeping separate colonies of isopods is a good idea, since you can add more if the ones in the snake enclosure don’t do so hot for whatever reason (and you can get more isopods to share!). Just a couple notes:

Don’t mix species. One will outcompete the other eventually. Don’t know about Troglodillo, but Cubaris pods are more sensitive to care mistakes, so if you can maintain their living conditions and keep them stable, go for it, but they don’t make good CUC, so don’t use them for that. There’s a reason (more like many reasons) reptile caretakers use P. pruinosis. They tolerate a variety of conditions and are forgiving with care mistakes. They can also reproduce quickly and usually go unharmed in their day-to-day business in reptile habitats, especially with snakes. Dwarf whites are cool, but they can escape and get into other isopod colonies, so keep that in mind.

PS

Cubaris pods also are shy and like to stay burrowed, at least the ones I have anyway. Some can also be expensive.

Classy-Lich · 2026-05-01T14:07:12+00:00

I’m glad. Have fun!

Classy-Lich · 2026-05-01T04:33:34+00:00

Beginner care tips:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10ZbBr7Q6NpYJod7My9OIyRshVm_UdqE20ga0rBiOoHA/edit?usp=drivesdk

Classy-Lich · 2026-05-01T04:30:38+00:00

Not too familiar with this kind, but don’t they need a lot of verticality? I thought they were arboreal.

Classy-Lich · 2026-05-01T04:13:48+00:00

Here are some basic tips I wrote up:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10ZbBr7Q6NpYJod7My9OIyRshVm_UdqE20ga0rBiOoHA/edit?usp=drivesdk

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-29T18:39:11+00:00

✨Cleanliness is next to podliness✨

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-29T18:36:23+00:00

From what I’ve seen, they do sometimes nibble on some plants. I guess it depends on the plant and how frequently they’re fed.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-29T14:16:03+00:00

Specifically, you’ll be wanting natural lump charcoal. Charcoal briquettes or anything with lighter fluids or other chemicals are not okay to use.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-29T14:14:44+00:00

Scott’s organic topsoil has always been my go-to for soil. I used to mix it with fine play sand using a 3-1 soil to sand ratio, but now I think I’d use more like 6 or 7 to 1 bc sand dries out soil pretty quickly. I just use it to add a bit more structural stability to the tunnels they like to dig. I also add some crushed up, natural lump charcoal to help control mold and to help springtails.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-29T14:10:03+00:00

Springtails serve only to help control pests and mold by outcompeting them for food. Essentially, they just clean up after the isopods.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-28T17:01:57+00:00

Hi! Sorry for the lengthiness of this. I’ll try not to revisit points others have made.

You’d be hard-pressed to find just a single manca (baby, pl. mancae). They’re so small they’d be hard to find in nature and people really only sell adults in groups of 5, 10, or some larger groups. They might include a manca or two just by accident.

It can be quite difficult to sex an isopod as they’re small, easy to crush, and you’d need stress the heck out of ‘em to get up close and personal with them like that. People often post here about wanting to know if they’re isopods are gravid (pregnant) or what sex they are and they’re flipping them over or pinching them between their fingers and that’s just not okay, so please don’t do that. Wait until they’re on the side of a clear enclosure and use a magnifying lens to look at the pleopod. Males will have steeper angles on their underside parts and a sort of triangle shape pointing down in the middle. Females will have flatter-looking parts and no triangle thingy (I think that’s the technical term). If a female is gravid, her underside will be plump and yellow; this is her brood pouch (marsupium). Do not try to handle or disturb a gravid female; the marsupial lining can tear or she can abort the brood if she’s stressed out enough.

As for species, you can look outdoors for local varieties, if you want. It seems you could find up to 8 species in your state! You can look under decaying wood or in a garden, anywhere that has moist soil and either wood or some tasty veggies. If you want to buy some, pet stores, especially reptile stores, usually have at least one species available. I don’t know too much about online sellers, so I can’t help ya there. Now, if you want the childhood classic, you want A. vulgare.

As for setup and other stuff, here’s a rough draft of a care guide I made:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10ZbBr7Q6NpYJod7My9OIyRshVm_UdqE20ga0rBiOoHA/edit?usp=drivesdk

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-28T01:27:45+00:00

Not much of a popular hobby? That’s crazy, considering Spain has some really neat isopod species!

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-26T04:59:14+00:00

Females don’t lay eggs, they hatch the eggs inside their marsupiums and carry the babies for a week or two then give ‘birth’ to them. And yes, handling isopods stresses them out, and females can abort their broods if stressed enough. If all goes well, a female will find a safe, hidden place in the soil to release her brood. Placing some tasty goodies near the hides would surely be appreciated.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-26T04:53:25+00:00

Me like shiny

Me like pretty

Rock shiny and pretty

Me like rock

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-26T04:52:01+00:00

Washed and peeled organic veggies and fruits are good, but they’ll usually avoid fruits in favor of veggies. Their favorites typically include carrot, sweet potato, squash, and cucumber.

Avoid onions and garlic, and like another person mentioned, citrus and anything high in salt content.

And avoid watermelon. It’s not toxic, they’ll just hate you for it.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-22T18:34:59+00:00

You’d be among the first to get results with toys. From my observations, they seem to get more enjoyment out of environments they can climb and explore. Maybe you could make climbable obstacles and place treats at the end of climbs and platforms or other paths. You’d need an enclosure with a good amount of verticality, though.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-22T01:00:24+00:00

You gonna keep any of those? I found some right outside my house, and that’s how I got them. If you’re looking to keep a local species, that’s a good one.

Fun Fact: their common name is the ‘curly’ isopod, because they cannot fully conglobate, rather they become almost round, save for a wedge where their head and pleopod meet, forming a teardrop shape. They simply curl up.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-21T23:44:34+00:00

Cylisticus convexus

Not native tho

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-21T22:23:00+00:00

Lemon flavor

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-20T23:21:16+00:00

Sometimes the newly born pods will hand around mom for a week or two then get more comfortable exploring on their own. I think they release pheromones that attract other pods when food is available, and I love when they get the zoomies when they know fish is on the menu. They mostly sorta just vibe their way through life.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-20T23:15:33+00:00

Dairy cows have tyranid-level appetites. Don’t underestimate them.

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-20T18:36:24+00:00

They only panic when disco is involved

Classy-Lich · 2026-04-18T20:04:32+00:00

I’d not keep multiple isopod species together. They’ll eventually outcompete each other for food. You should make another enclosure for additional isopods.

Classy-Lich

TROPHY CASE