Isopod Care Guide Part 6: Why Are they Dying?

Isopods are some of the best pet invertebrates! In this isopod care guide, I discuss isopod troubleshooting isopod care and specifically isopod deaths. There are some factors in isopod care you can influence to prevent isopod deaths, while others are beyond your control. if you want to care for your pet isopods in the right way, this video will help.
Check out these LINKS to Isopod foods and supplies below. As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
I own a copy of book on isopods by Orin McMonigle, a great source of isopod knowledge:
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Wally at Supreme Gecko makes a great Isopod food: www.supremegeck...
superior shipping supplies.com makes the smaller isopod enclosures I show in the video.
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Isopods will munch on dried River shrimp as well!
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Isopod Substrate ingredients:
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I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. In other words, I earn a small commission when you use that affiliate link, at no cost to you.

[@ScallySquash]

I bought some cheap isopods as feeders for my toads. We had a heat wave and they completely dried out, causing two thirds of the culture to perish. But now we’re booming. I’ll be getting some fancy ones in the future! I hated them as a child, now I love them 😄

[@bipolarbusiness6989]

I’ve been over watering for sure. And not as much ventilation in one of my enclosures. I lost one of my 5 new rubber duckies. Broke my heart! Thanks for the advice ❤

[@Aquarimax]

Glad you found this helpful! Best of luck with the remaining duckies!

[@themantisgarden]

Binging your videos here whilst feeding my zoo, mate. You're one of the few Americans who's voice I can cope with over a long period of time 😆 After all these years I still stress out when I see a few dead adults in an enclosure, doesn't matter how long you've been in the hobby it can still happen if you don't pay attention. Having too many can also be a cause of death!

[@Aquarimax]

Great points….we always need to be vigilant! I’m curious, what is it about my voice that makes it easy to listen to long-term?

[@themantisgarden]

@@Aquarimax It doesn't have that grating quality that a lot of American accents have for we Brits. I love Serpa design, but Tanners voice makes my ears bleed after 10 minutes haha Yours is quite a soft calming voice rather than the loud excitable tones you usually get for your side of the pond.

[@JunFeril]

Thank you Rus. After seeing the baby isopods , what was produced by the wild caught ones, I am getting more attached to them.

[@waverindarkness3385]

Would incense count as an airborn particle that would harm the isopods?

[@realchiknuggets]

yes, and scented candles.

[@JessicaKSchnell]

I started the colony in May for a science class lab. Over the summer, I transferred them to a 5 gallon tank with a lid that doesn't quite fit (allowing air flow). Just had a massive die-off this month. It got very dry (winter apartment heating) but even after heavy misting before all were completely dead, the numbers seem to keep going down. Thank you for providing valuable information!

[@LukaTisus]

I recently received some Cubaris sp Lemon Yellow and C.sp Panda King. I've lost two lemon yellows, one was rolled in a tight ball and I thought maybe it was due to my disturbing the setup, but it's started to decay. After this video I've added more ventilation and cross ventilation to the setup, as well as seeded it with some springtails to hopefully help reduce the mold, as the colonies are only 6-10 individuals. Hoping they perk up soon! My M.sp tricolor seem to be doing quite well at least.

[@underdogjourney203]

More great content, as usual, Rus! I’ve recently started keeping Philoscia Muscorum and Armadillidium Vulgare because they seem to be the most common in my area and I wanted to start with local species. Thanks a lot for the great info!

[@spacemonkey0507]

Loved the video just found 60 vulgare outside under a rock 😊!!!

[@cullenbatsel]

Best man on the internet

[@Chickenandfriends-dj4vt]

A lot of great info here as is usual in your videos. Much appreciated mate. I have a happy and healthy colony of porcellio scaber here in Melbourne, Australia and am a big fan of your educational videos. Thanks a bunch!

[@Aquarimax]

Delighted to hear it! 😊👍

[@lucasroman6510]

i love taking care of isopods and making different morphs by separating them in groups, they have a great genetic variety and fast reproducing cycle (they are all from the backyard)

[@captfantastic]

GREAT video Rus! Since I live in a desert area, it's usually pretty easy to keep my pods enclosure properly balanced... it's usually dry, warm and doesn't fluctuate much... except for our three months of winter. Even tho it's cold and snowy outside, the air will be much dryer inside and dry the poor little isopods right out... got to keep an eye on the moisture level...

[@sphericreptiles]

Great content.

[@ethan6322]

Another great video, just got some dwarf whites for a vivarium im building!

[@frankdughtank8327]

Awesome Points Rus

[@adambarczynski6069]

Question: can a moulted piece of shell of my laevis 'orange' still be orange? I always saw only white, kind of see-through shells and I got scared that this might mean one of my isopods has died. Thanks, love the videos and I'm thinking of becoming a patron too :)

[@Aquarimax]

Great question! I have only seen very pale, whitish molts. It could be that one of them has passed.

[@stuckinthelazycorneragain4016]

Thanks for the video, very helpful! It's not always obvious what the issue is so this is a good video to come back to in the future if I ever encounter any issues.

[@carlakellie5358]

Thank you for the info

[@PeppersnGlowworms]

That's a nice and concise troubleshooting video, thank you!

[@MOONOVERMIAMI]

hello great video information

[@zko451]

I had a tragic situation where I reiecved several pillbugs at once from Smug Bug and all the ones I out in these plastic slide out sheleves died. I don't blame Smug Bug, Ive had great luck with the other isopods from her! And the one species I put in a regular tub have thrived. I'm not sure what happened. It was quick. I thought the stacked plastic drawers would be great for access and ventilation and minimzing space. I still feel sad about it and I kinda baby my isopods now even though the others have done great. I'm afraid to get more expensive ones til I can be sure it'll never happen again!

[@Aquarimax]

Is it possible that the ones in the shelves dried out?

[@zko451]

@@Aquarimax unfortunately i think that is the most likely option. had thought that keeping the drawers closed, since not airtight, would provide the right amount of ventilation but was likely too much. and realized too late i underestimated the amount of substrate i needed for the housing and it was too shallow. had thought it was maybe some residue on the drawers that killed them. in the future, and for anyone else, if I tried that again i would do much more substrate with a moisture retaining layer, have it set up far ahead of time so not having the supplies isn't a crisis. possibly some sort of material over the shelves to regulate airflow. this was early on in my isopod keeping experience so i was flying blind. since then ive had good success keeping them and they thrived with minimal care. I'm very grateful for the resources from you, bugsincyberspace, smug bug and reptilatus for learning better care so thank you! currently caring for porcellio scaber orange, onsicus aesllus, venezillo parvus and armadillidium peraccae!

[@armadillidiumvulgare2517]

In my year-old wild Armadillidium Vulgare colony, I am having isopods slowly die off (2-3 individuals every two weeks or so). I tried increasing ventallation and watered the hydration-station once every 4-5 days, but deaths are still occuring. Do you have any idea why they are dying?

[@GoblinFeet666]

When my baby isopods died I needed to know ...ty

[@Crystalspets]

This is great information rus I know my clowns isopods collection keep dying off on me

[@ThePederangell]

awesome video. good advice. I luv it

[@korthosen949]

2 of my gestroi died since i got them (3 months now, i dont think the "pack" is in danger but theres some oddity with leaf litter) so: they have acess to a side with heavier swagna moss deployment (whichs is always kept humid) nd a drier side where i rarely at all spray water they got couple of plants on each side matching the conditions the substrat is a layered mix of several soils, gravel, charocoal, spahgnum moss, white rotten wood, pine chips, humus nd a bit more (payed around 120€ for all soils for my 20l terrarium) the isopods have acess to the top layers nd ontop of the top layer there are loads of leaf litter usually u can see 1-3 isopods during the day sicne they can hide in all dimensions literally their play buddies are white nd orange spring tails and the small white isopods (before i got the isopods the terrarium had springtails in it for ~ 1 month) ofc i went ham on the food supply too, got around 14 different Bags of Food & food supplementaries nd i regularly feed peeled veggies or fruits (over feeding is almost impossible due to the amount of springtails) and the temperatur is at a "constant" 21-24 c (sometimes its 25 but i turn down as soon as i notice) i´d think if there is any issue it might be the leaf litter usually isopods should munch on it but they are just ignoring it (might be contamined ?) my other terrarium with isopods from my yard there the isopods will even clip plants to get more food (whichs totally fine thats one of the reason i always have plants ) even thou they are feed properly but they dont like the leaf litter either Would it be possible to just boil the leaf litter or should i throw it away nd buy from another seller? i sadly forgot to get free leaf litter in winter nd now its too late

[@zockertwins]

is the enclosure exposed to direct sunlight? Try to limit the foods and supplements you give them, maybe it's one of them. Leaf litter, wood matter, veggies and the occasional protein and calcium source should be enough, depending on species of course.

[@korthosen949]

@@zockertwins No it gets some Light from my Lamp but its ~ 5 meters away from the next window :)

[@golbezgirl6290]

anyone know what eats isopods,i got a community tank and my milkbacks i just culled are in the thousands again,none of the anoles or longtails lizards will eat them,i don't think my tomatoe frog is eating them either,i am trying to get my hands on wood louse spiders,their native to where i live but hard to find,anything else actively eat milkbacks?

[@zer0coolninja887]

Great content 🔥 🔥 🔥

[@jn4922]

Thank you for your advice

[@thedarkabyss100]

Greetings, I recently got a 20-pack of Porcellio hoffmanseggi with 4 extra for freebies a week ago, 3 died in the transit which I expected, but a week later, after doing a round-up of the isopods, I noticed there were only 19 left. One I didn't see die but the other, I saw moving around the enclosure a while ago and when I checked the enclosure before going to bed, I see the exact one dead. Is this normal die-off as they get used to their new enclosure or am I doing something wrong? The enclosure is currently a 12x8x10 inch kritter keeper with 30% moist side and a 70% dry side, with all the required things such as decaying leaf litter and wood to gnaw into. I have tried feeding them a couple times with crustacean food such as Hikari Shrimp Cuisine which has usable copper, could that be it? But then again this is regarded safe for cherry shrimp. The lid is the usual critter keeper lid with an abundant amount of ventilation, but could more be needed? I also never use pesticides besides the ant bait gel that makes the ants go back to the queen but currently I have petroleum gel lined at the lower lip of the enclosure so that no stray ants can get up there while the bait is ongoing I live in the Philippines, specifically in the highlands and this week there was a day where the temperature could jump to 73.4 degrees to 77 degrees Fahrenheit in a few hours during the day, but jump back down gradually as the sun sets to 60.8 degrees fahrenheit. Could this temperature change be the culprit? Though these hoffs are from a seller that tells me they keep their room with the air conditioner at a similar temperature at night time. EDIT: I wanted to clarify that the regular temperature range during a day without intense sunshine is around 70-72 degrees and and starting in September and ending in Ferbruary, both day and night temperatures would drop significantly, as later in the year the temps for daytime can drop to 68 degrees and 55 at night, could this upcoming cold season do them in?

[@Aquarimax]

Temp changes can be an issue, and this species can sometimes benefit for moderate rather than high ventilation.

[@davidalexander3016]

Question: Can Isopods live in an unsealed glass containers/ bowls? Also, what is an ideal temperature for the colony? (Love the vids btw🔥)

[@joeverall2791]

For your first question; if you'd like to make a sealed terrarium, you must have living plant matter-I'd suggest 5+ plants-as these produce "micro oxygen"- which, typically, can sustain a smaller Isopod colony (plus add springtails and other sizable invertebrates for tank buddies.) Second question; room temperature is ideal for must species of Isopods, even tropical species.

[@mikaylasproul4780]

My springtail enclosure has a giant fluffy mold bit and i haven't removed it because everytime I open the lid the springtails are all over ot eating it, should I watch and make sure their food isnt molding or should i leave it since they like to eat it?

[@Aquarimax]

As long as it doesn’t seem to cause any problems, and they are eating it, I would leave it and not feed any more until it is gone or they lose interest in it.

[@NEOTHEGREAT6]

Thanks for the info I had some dying in only one of my smaller enclosures and I noticed some baby's could multiple mature isopods be dying from breeding ? Also some young got out of this enclosure and unfortunately died so I've moved all remaining isopods big and small into a much bigger set up I'm hoping they will grow to be healthy but I'm not sure because of the death in their previous enclosure

[@ChantalsCritters]

Great points

[@FAKoLL]

So maybe a closed jar is not a good place for isopods. Right? Mine started diying in mass, and the came out on the surface before diying. Also my springtails were frozen in place. I didn't clean the plants very accurately so i thought it could be bad chemicals, but maybe it's airflow too since after opening the lid, the springtails started moving again a few hours later... i need to try again. Im so sad for my isopods, i hope i wont make them die again (they are my first jar terrariums anyway)

[@Aquarimax]

Lack of oxygen is a likely cause of the issue. There might be a few species that could do fine in a well-established closed terrarium, but most appreciate some ventilation.

[@cloudfox2471]

I also understand that cocoa fibre is not good for Isopoda or millipedes as they can't digest this and it blocks up their digestive tract eventually leading to death. Hope this helps 🐸

[@Aquarimax]

Cocofiber is not terribly nutritious for them...but years ago I did use that as the base substrate (under the leaf layer) of my isopod enclosures, and they lived and bred on it for generations...they seem to do better in the substrate I use now, though.

[@JeremydePrisco]

Do isopods go into stasis just before molting? Trying to diagnose some behavior with some individuals.

[@Aquarimax]

Immediately before a molt, they will tend to anchor the,selves in one spot.

[@imnotagamer22]

Just started my collection; recognized some white webbing and then I started to freak thinking there was a spider somewhere in it. Then more research later I figured out it was mold forming 😥. I feel stupid

[@chaukumlong4436]

Hi, may I know amber ducky like damp or drier space? Yesterday I saw one of my amber baby dead… Thanks

[@Aquarimax]

i haven’t kept them, but I would guess a gradient is a good idea, but mostly damp space. Most Cubaris have trouble with dry areas.

[@spencerrawlins7495]

Recently got some Rubber duckies (I already had a small culture of 3 and got 12 more) and just checked, some seem to be upside down (it all happened over 1 night I have no clue why so suddenly). Those who are upside down seem to respond to touch slightly but wont really get up from their current state. It happened so rapidly and only a few days after they had arrived. I didn't have any ventilation holes on my enclosure for the time being cause I had been busy and was gonna get around to adding them this weekend. My first guess would have to be that the lid was too tight and they might not have been getting enough oxygen (sounds silly since its a ziplock container and I doubt its that airtight). Another guess I have is that it might be some sort of disease from mixing the two cultures together (but one is relatively small). If anyone has any insight into my problems I'd love some feedback cause the duckies were not cheap lol! Thanks

[@trevorbraden5448]

Yes I bought some ducks and lost more than half of them...... most species I've learned nead a significant amount of air flow I made the mistake with several colonies..... I've been making really deep substrate and really big vent holes on both sides and now all my colonies are thriving.....I also made the mistake and made the entire tub really wet.... it needs to be moist but they do need a drier side and a moist side.... I use moss on the wet side and now I just dump water on that side instead of spraying down the whole tub

[@Apostate_ofmind]

After now two of my (then) 17 Nasatum died, i started to panic, cause there isnt many of them to recoup the numbers, and they havent reproduced since i got them (not long). I have also a millipede in there which is a lot more sensitive to humidity, so i know its not that, and its not too humid either. They have started to molt, which im glad to see, but one died half- molt (front half). Could the incapacity to molt be a factor? I have stopped any 'intergators' (turtle feed, only giving them some dried shrimp instead, and even that sparingly) to see if that the culprit, but i worry. Is there a way to help them moult? If it was a reptile id know to give it moisture/bath, but here is new territory for me. The number is not unehard of, and they didnt die in close succession, but still.

[@Aquarimax]

Do they have a moisture gradient and some good ventilation? Also, plenty of surface (vertical, horizontal) upon which to cling. Those are is probably the best way to ensure successful molts.

[@Apostate_ofmind]

@@Aquarimax ventilation i have now (today) improved upon, cross and now also on the top. They did start with a non airtight and not too high enclosure, which i end up opening for inspection once or twice a day, in a ventilated spot. Ill add upon the moisture, since there is a corner with a bit more 'straw' material which i suspect can hold water nicely. They have a medium size enclosure, for their body size, a good compromise so that they can find eachoter easely but can run around. Thank you for the response, fingers crossed!

[@ethanotoroculus1060]

Hey there. I'm an onlooker of the isopod hobby, but I'm worried I might have made a rather embarrassing mistake in preparing for a project and would like to get an honest opinion if you're willing to hear it out. So, I've recently been getting materials together to try and make my first "real" tank. I've kept A. vulgare in the past on a low budget, but this is the first time I've prepared for any larger project. About a month back, I purchased a brick of coco fiber and expanded it in advance (with conditioned water of course) in a sterile vertical container. In the time since that month, getting the other components took longer than I had hoped, and I almost never opened the airtight container out of fear of quarantining it from pests. I'm not completely sure, but I fear the time I took preparing could have allowed anaerobic bacteria to develop due to the factors of sitting water and lack of aeration. Having checked on it today, while it shows no visual signs of contamination and is of the correct consistency, there is a subdued but unusual smell when held closer. This has me really concerned. I don't have the experience to know whether I'm dealing with a fixable problem or if I've messed up the brick. Searching online has given very lackluster results, so instead I feel that I should turn to someone with much more experience than me. How do I handle this situation? Is it still possible to fix the coco fiber at this point or is it no longer ideal? I hate the idea of just having to throw out the fiber if there's a way I could make it usable again, but if it really does present a serious or unsolvable issue then I'm prepared to do it. I want to give my bugs the best life possible within reason, even if that means I have to prevent mistakes like these. Do note as well that the tank I eventually planned to introduce the substrate into has springtails, a false bottom, mesh layer and charcoal layer. If at all a factor, let me know how this would factor into that. Thanks in advance if anyone responds to this.

[@You_got_a_tiktok_problem]

A little bit late. But great video!!!

[@seizedcarcass8440]

I just received a 25 lotto mix isopods from smug bugs today. I setup a tub very similar to yours. What do you generally feed them?

[@Aquarimax]

In addition to leaf litter, Supreme Isopod Chow, fish food pellets, and bits of veggies like squash, green beans, and sweet potato.

[@Derangedcrow77]

What's the most hardy isopod?

[@Aquarimax]

Hard to say…I guess it depends on the environment to some extent. Porcellionides pruinosus, Porcellio dilatatus, and Cylisticus convexus can adapt to a wide range of environments, and are certainly high on the list.

[@taranchies1505]

Hi thanks so much for these videos, really detailed and helpful! :) I wondered if an enclosure can be too big for the number of isopods? I had 11 Armadillidian klugii in a 30 litre plastic box with 6 giant hissing roaches. It had good ventilation, a humidity gradient; mossy areas I kept damp then dry areas too with lots of decaying leaves and rotting wood hiding places.They were in there a few months and now I only have 2 of the isopods left (I have moved them to a smaller enclosure now on their own to monitor them better). I found 3 dead ones (full bodies so not the moults). However I cleared out the whole of the hissing roach closure and never found the bodies of 6 of the isopods. So that made me think maybe the roaches ate them, but I didn't think roaches did that? I was also wondering whether the enclosure was too big for the isopods to find the damp and dry areas when needed.

[@Aquarimax]

Hmmm...I would tend to suspect the roaches to some degree...but the fact that you found some dead would make me wonder whether they had some issues with moisture regulation. Finally, in some cases as least, I isopods can sometimes benefit from smaller spaces to encounter each other more often

[@taranchies1505]

@@Aquarimax Thanks so much for the quick reply! I have some more isopods arriving this week so this time I will keep them in their own smaller enclosure and hopefully make it easier for them to regulate moisture levels.

[@whorfianist]

Will mold kill my isopods? And will spraying hydrogen peroxide directly onto the mold harm the isopods in the same viv?

[@Aquarimax]

A little mold will probably not kill them, excessive mold can. I am not sure what spraying hydrogen peroxide would do, so I can’t recommend it.

[@Liddrey]

Hello Rus! Quite late here! were gestroi purely for illustration purposes, or are they one of the species showing very varying life expectancy ? It's often molting ones, despites the moisture gradient, in a large-ish setup !

[@Aquarimax]

I think most isopod species in the hobby vary significantly in life expectancy. I do find that once a gestroi gets really huge, it might not survive a very long time after that. Molting is often a time when isopods die, but this may indicate a need for an adjustment of ventilation. The moisture gradient is important, but some species will have issues u less the ventilation suits them as well.

[@Liddrey]

@@Aquarimax Thank you for answering so fast ! When considering ventilation issues, is it more often than not too much , or not enough ventilation? As it's a display setup, the ventilation is quite nice (cross + 1/4 of the top). It might also be worth noting that it's quite a recent colony I had a month ago, counting around 40 individuals of varying size, medium ones being the ones dying. ~apologies for my broken english, it's not my first language

[@mrstcj6069]

I just killed 50+ Cubaris Rubber Duckys because I forgot to change my water filter and was spraying them with that water... they started dying off slowly and no matter what adjustments I made they all but 5 juvies died. I'm so sad about it not to mention the money I invested lost. I had 7 bins of different species and the only ones that really showed minimal effects was my cows and almost no effects was my dwarf whites... those guys are highly adaptable.

[@Aquarimax]

Oh no!!

[@sdqsdq6274]

cause of death ?

[@sneekyalexa2657]

This was a great video to review the general care information and trouble shooting! I'm having a weird issue though and I'm not sure where to go for advice. I have some oreo and blue p. pruinosus that I've recently separated from my other cultures into a new small container/lunch meat tub, as they came from my other oreos with more prominent patterning. Upon being in this container for maybe a week or so, I've noticed yesterday that they're moving very slowly and many of them are missing segments of their antannae? The container is a bit shallower than my regular 6qt tubs since it's small, but it has quite a bit of ventilation and still a moisture gradient. The original cultures that were stacked with and next to them are fine though. Could this be something from the shock of switching?

[@Aquarimax]

@@sneekyalexa2657 Hmmm…the fact that they are moving very slowly makes me wonder if they could have been exposed to a toxin of some kind? Just a guess.

[@Three_therians_in_a_den]

I’m very late but my friend found a lot of pill bugs in her tree. We’re not too sure what kind but they’re a dark greyish colour. I noticed one of them had only one antanae/eye (not sure what they’re called.) I made a small recovery box for him. Will it survive because it isn’t crawling around when I place it on my hand. Did the antennae fall off or get ripped off? And will it heal?

[@Aquarimax]

The species may be Armadillidium vulgare. The antennae can be lost during a bad molt or potentially damaged by another animal. Fortunately, antennae will regrow with a molt, if the isopod is in the proper conditions. 👍🏼

[@Three_therians_in_a_den]

@@Aquarimax ok thank you!😄

[@themaxolotl3365]

Thank for vid

[@BattleField3eee]

Hello, I have very few dead isopod and this is my question: I want to ask if I should remove them from the enclosure or leave it? I also have springtails if that helps decomposing the dead, although I'm not sure. There's about 2 out of 15 dead (both adults died)

[@Aquarimax]

You can remove them ..,with larger numbers of isopods, they will disappear quickly…could go either way with this number.

[@BattleField3eee]

@@Aquarimax Thank you so much and for your work! Cheers to this hobby.

[@yesnobutyes]

What are good isopod species for closed terrariums?

[@MIsopods]

If you do not stack, as I do not. Do you consider side/cross ventilation essential? Since I don't stack, I've had no issues with the amount of ventilation on the top, but I'm just trying to see if there's any benefits to doing it, or disadvantages to not. I could be wrong, but it seems that everything I have heard about side ventilation stems from stacking. Aside from the few species that demand those higher volumes of ventilation as you mentioned. Of course.

[@Aquarimax]

I think there are many feasible ways to ventilate, and cross ventilation, though it has certain benefits, is by no means essential. I stack for space reasons, but even if I didn’t, I think cross ventilation does improve airflow as opposed to just top vents.

[@emmadalton9449]

Thanks Rus, got some death happening but I’m all the way in Australia. Any advice for encouraging breeding as well?

[@Aquarimax]

Which species are you working with?

[@oleanderriley4804]

how can you tell the difference between molts and corpses? I'm always worried if I've killed all of them

[@Aquarimax]

One thing that will help is that isopods molt in phases...one half of the body at a time. If you find what looks like a molt and it is in one piece...it is not a molt.

[@oleanderriley4804]

@@Aquarimax thank you so much. unfortunately, this has made me realize that what I was finding were, in fact, corpses. after moving the survivors to a new home, I am sad to say that I now only have 6. I'm waiting for others to surface so that I can move them, but I think what killed them was my choice in substrate; I accidentally picked up a moisture-retaining potting soil from the garden store and gave them too much water and not enough moisture gradient. I hope that these intrepid 6 will flourish into a colony worthy of the size of their brand new 6 quart Sterlite

[@taranchies1505]

@@Aquarimax I was also wondering this, thanks!

[@theCreative_Rosey]

I started keeping isopods because my siblings caught a ton in a jar and didn't take care of them so when i was cleaning the jar some were still alive and im about to get my first litter

[@Aquarimax]

congrats on the upcoming little ones...

[@theCreative_Rosey]

Thanks im very excited

[@Asrielmerrymoon]

I’ve been trying to convince my mom to let me get a small colony of dairy cows and I am so desperate to have some

[@djatrinity]

Hi I recently started an isopod terrarium from one's I caught outside. But probably should have washed or even boiled the leaves and sticks in their tank. There are all kinds of little critters in there now. Are any of these dangerous, predatory or parasitic, to the rolly polys? And what should I do if they are?

[@stevo-kun3924]

Can you feed isopods dead lady bugs?

[@Aquarimax]

I would hesitate as there are some natural distasteful chemicals in ladybugs

[@stevo-kun3924]

@@Aquarimax what about springtails? I have 4,000 of them in several cultures

[@Aquarimax]

@@stevo-kun3924 Isopods would probably eat dead ones, but you might as well allow them to remain alive and serve as a cleanup crew for your Isopods.

[@jumi6051]

I started out with a starter culture of 13 isopods 2 weeks ago, since then like every 3-5 day one died, now i only have 10 left. I mean i don't get it, if somethings wrong wouldn't they all just die? And no, they were really old, maybe adult but still not completely big

[@lhjune0316]

I have a question! I am planning to keep Dwarf Whites and Powder Blues together in the same container. Will that be okay, or will one species out-compete and wipe out the other? Thanks for the videos, I honestly learned so much about isopod care and maintenance!

[@phan643]

I just got about 15 powder orange prunious isopods for a bioactive terrarium and now I only see four. 😥

[@Aquarimax]

It may be ok, the tend to hide pretty well until the population increases

[@Creature_Creative]

Great, chill videos, thanks for all the info you provide. I'm new to the hobby, recently got 11 Armadillidium maculatum and I have a question. I've noticed that some of my zebras are chasing some others (but not all individuals), and I also found that one will cling to another, after which the one that was below is really weak, barely moving etc. I've had die-off due to this now, even though I intervened and separated one from the others (one caught in the act) but another was doing the same. Do you know what's causing this? Is it territorial behaviour?

[@siyg]

This really just sounds like mating. Males will tend to sit on females for days, this is called mate guarding

[@Peter-ve1oo]

I never seen my isopods eat. But they are getting multiply How does it works?

[@Aquarimax]

They often eat within us noticing…they don’t even need to eat supplemental food to do so, if there is plenty of good stuff in the substrate

[@Peter-ve1oo]

@@Aquarimax thanks mate ! I was thinking my isopods get some problem with they enclosure for sure 😅

[@Peter-ve1oo]

@@Aquarimax can i give them some grape slice?

[@wojtek3277]

Question: I have a bioactive setup for my pet, and I've put some isopods in there. I see their numbers declining but cannot find a reason why. based on this video they have everything they need

[@Aquarimax]

What kind of pet? Is it eating some of them?

[@wojtek3277]

@@Aquarimax I keep a snake, definitely doesn't eat any of them

[@Aquarimax]

@@wojtek3277 I agree...very few snakes would eat isopods. Which species of isopod do you have?

[@wojtek3277]

@@Aquarimax I have white dwarf tropical woodlice and tropical grey woodlice, not sure what are their scientific names

[@cheese5943]

Can I use common moss as a hydration system from cement bricks and stones?

[@Aquarimax]

That would probably work

[@cheese5943]

@@Aquarimax what about the leaves? Can I use the Indian almond leaves?

[@claudiopereira5163]

Hi, Im preparing some big composting piles and I heard that adding isopods is a great way to accelerate the process, do you know something about ?? The final compost is better with or without isopods ??

[@Aquarimax]

Isopods can be beneficial in composting, in terms of speeding up the process, though I have not looked into how they affect the quality.

[@claudiopereira5163]

@@Aquarimax thank for replying :)

[@aariesdagoat5578]

Hey man I wanted to know if by chance where did you get the caved in limestone rocks? There really cool and like to get some but can't find any in stores

[@lorraelena]

Do isopods normally burrow during or after they molt? I only have a very small number of Magic Potions and one went missing at the same time I noticed discarded molt on the substrate.

[@MIsopods]

I've seen it pretty frequently, so I wouldn't be surprised. I find that they enjoy molting in a myriad of different ways and under different conditions.

[@Glenn..quagmire]

When you say moist and dry, what's a good indicator that an area is too moist, or too dry?

[@Aquarimax]

If it is too moist, you can squeeze drops of water out of it. If the enclosure has a moisture gradient, so the isopods can easily reach the moist area, then it is hard to have an area that is too dry…some of the humidity in the moister area will still affect the dry area a little.

[@Whateverhasbeenmynameforyears]

I was hoping you would have a link to a water conditioner.

[@Aquarimax]

I like this one: #ad www.amazon.com/dp/B0002A5WPQ/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_XEPZXM18VJAH005TNJZ5?linkCode=ml2&tag=aquarimax-20

[@Whateverhasbeenmynameforyears]

@@Aquarimax Thanks for the response.

[@straightfifty4202]

Hey I've got some 12x 7x7 bins I put some isopods in a couple weeks ago. Today I noticed two dead isopods , one in my dairy bin and one in my zebra. They were both full grown adults. Could this just be age related?

[@Aquarimax]

It could be that, but a new bin goes through a break-in period, could be that as well.

[@straightfifty4202]

@@Aquarimax cool! Is this something I should worry over if I notice a couple more deaths? Thanks for the response, love your vids man

[@thrax1920]

I got armadilo isopods in a Jar ( I live in Greece ). How often should i open the jar's lid so they get fresh air ? I dont want it constantly opened because the moisture will be gone. Thanks.

[@Aquarimax]

Is it better to have airflow at all times if you can. Can you get a plastic bundle and put holes high up on the sides?

[@thrax1920]

@@Aquarimax Yes but constant ventilation wont expel the moisture from the soil ?

[@Aquarimax]

@@thrax1920 well, I use constant ventilation with all of mine…and I l live in a dry area. I just make sure to keep one area moist, so I dampen the moss 2-3 times per week. Depending on humidity, airflow, temperature, and substrate, that might be more or less often for you

[@julian-zs4be]

my isopods die when molting, why is that?

[@isiopod1939]

I recently bought some dairy cows from someone who needed to get rid of them. When I got home and checked on them, one of them was split in half! The container was rather small, transportation was very short since they lived in the next town over. The body seems fairly fresh, does anyone have any insight? Edit: while looking for the other half of the isopod, I found that one of the others had a bent shell. Could they have gotten into a fight? I haven't found the other half of the body. Will the one with the bent shell be alright? Will there be any problems with molting?

[@siyg]

Are you sure this isn’t a molt? Isopods shed half of their exoskeleton at a time

[@isiopod1939]

@@siyg it was like a freshly dead isopod, the body hadn't even gotten white yet, but it hasn't happened again since then. Thanks for responding though.

[@Ratiorr]

remember iridesent virus

[@frankdughtank8327]

:D