#ads_isopods

[adragonsoulants]

Time for some isopod exfoliation

I can very much see why people recommend against this species in bioactive set ups! These guys did not hesitate to nibble!!

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Some pod photos from today's feeding

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Found a chocolate morph in my zebra bin last night!

Debating on putting it into its own bin because they're a bit hard to confirm as chocolate until they're practically adults. Juvenile zebra pods have this brown coloration and grow out of it.

[adragonsoulants]

Gave the kids some apples today :)

[adragonsoulants]

Took some isopod photos while doing the rounds today!

Caught this guy munching on their own shed ( C. convexus)

Bunch of Baby A. Vulgari hanging out with some starkly different adults.

The Zebras we're gathered on the ventilation, they like hanging out there, hope they don't have an airflow issue... (A. Maculatum)

And lastly the accidental T. Rathkii colony I didn't even know existed until like a month ago when I noticed stuff crawling about in there :') these are probably all descendants of 1 isopod that was hiding on something that I didn't treat putting in there.

[adragonsoulants]

(queued post) Tis the season of finding isopods in my room!! (I live in a basement, bugs happen)

A little Porcellionides sp. I've only found P. Spinicornis in my room before so this was a surprise! I put this one in with the others, I'll have to do regular checks about my room for them now! I don't want them drying up!!

[adragonsoulants]

A T. Rathkii from my unintentional colony

It dove into the food and got it's face and antenna covered in food.

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They got some carrots today :)

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Helping me watch the buggies.

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Got some new bins to work on moving some isopod cultures into new fresh set ups. Currently working on moving the dairy cows since their bin is like pure frass

Made a little pitfall trap to catch the rest hiding in the bin since I forgot to get a sieve... It's working pretty well though!

I also decided last minute to instead of giving the bin to the Zebras to try and make a dubia roach culture

Originally bought them as feeders for the ants but ahg, they're cute and would save me money. I might go back and get a few adults or just let these guys grow and do their thing 🤷

At the moment I have them set up like I do my isopods, gonna see how that works out.

I was a little apprehensive to trying to keep these guys before since they do require heating, literally won't reproduce if it's below 68f and my room is usually around 64-65f... So I'm gonna try putting them on top of my snakes tank near the heater and see if that works well. But first the lid is a little warped so I'm weighing it down with other bins and I have a fan on their ventilation since it's probably too humid in there.

[adragonsoulants]

So I have an accidental T. Rathkii culture now...

(green stuff isn't mold, it's too much isopod food)

Originally set up this container for a local millipede I caught and well... It belongs to the pods now... Never saw a single isopod in there but I guess all it took was one pregnant one...

Wasn't planning on keeping this species but I guess I am now lol.

[adragonsoulants]

Sense it's been warming up, almost every night I've been going outside to just go and look out at the bugs. Especially warm and humid nights just after a rainfall. This is how I found the c. Subbarbatus queen!

It's been a bit cold this past week so the bugs would of been hiding staying warm, so I didn't bother going out. But today it started to warm up again! And, not only was it humid to begin with but it also stormed this evening! So it was super wet and damp out!

It was still on the cooler side so insects were largely inactive and hiding aside from the few ants out foraging. But there were LOADS of isopods! All over just nibbling and wandering.

I don't typically take pictures when I'm out doing this sense it's pretty hard to get decent photo, plus it's nice to just enjoy the time with no screens n what not. Being in the moment sort of thing.

However, just as I was heading back inside I saw this MASSIVE isopod right at our front door. Unsure the species, if you know I'd love to hear!

This lil fella was as big as some of my larger p. Laevis Dairy cows!

[adragonsoulants]

Some buggy photos

Millipedes enjoying a cucumber. Can see a little baby trying to get some too.

Some crude photos of the P. Floria, just enamored by their shine. They're also quite skilled at climbing smooth plastic (for an isopod that is). Also looks like a couple of them are gravid too.

I got to see one of their sheds a couple days ago and it was so cool looking!

[adragonsoulants]

Was checking in on the Isopods a day later and got some nice photos :)

Starting with the P. Spinicornis who are so easy to photograph

Next, the A. Maculatum "Zebra," these guys have been very active about their new enclosure now, used to just hide all the time. These guys are also easy to photograph.

Lastly, the P. Laevis, these guys I had to go no hand light as the more transparent the isopod the more sensitive to light they are and they just scatter soon as it's on them. My dim room light ended up being enough tho!

The last photo is super cute with a juvenile and a tiny lil baby munching on some food together.

[adragonsoulants]

Did some walking around outside again and found some interesting things!

First off, a cicada that recently emerged from the ground and is looking for a place to molt.

I moved them away from our garage and over by a tree where I usually find cicada molts on.

Some of what I am pretty sure are Prenolepis imparis ants, there was a line of them going up the tree, probably collecting some tree sap. I tried following these ones to their nest but... I think they got lost as they all started fumbling around in this one spot after following the one that was in the lead laying a scent trail.

Another funky lil isopod. I think it's an Armadillidium, unsure if it's Vulgari or not but marking wise it looks ALOT like a P. Spinicornis with the lighter body, single row of yellow spots ( P. Spinicornis has 2 rows), and the dark brown/black head. However, unlike P. Spinicornis this one is a lot more convex, able to roll up, and has a smooth exoskeleton. (I did also find another P. Floria but no picture, the culture has mancae already though?!)

And something from earlier that day, I think it's an ant-mimic spider

[adragonsoulants]

Update to last night's post. Did some more research on the unidentified isopod and the reddit post was actually correct on their ID (Google was just giving me bad results) , they are Cylisticus convexus. Again the orange uropods does not appear to be something entirely typical with this species.

Odd how both of these very different species have orange uropods, wonder if it's something in the environment causing it like high iron? Or all the pine needles?

Same pics again cuz why not

Both the ones I cought yesterday appear to be doing well. The P. Floria was out chilling on some bark I put in there.

Planning to set up some isopod potato traps later today in that area to see what all more can be found, hopefully some more P. Floria so I can set up a viable colony of them.