# Armadillidium klugii or other non-dwarf Isopods as clean up crew?



## fishingguy12345 (Apr 7, 2019)

I've tried searching the forum for this, read every thread that seemed relevant but still have questions.

Does anyone use Isopods other than dwarf whites or dwarf purple as a cleanup crew?

I keep 20 (or so) types of Isopods, I'm contemplating using some different kinds in frog tanks, ones I'm likeliest to try: 

Armadillidium klugii "Montenegro": stay fairly small (1/2"), breed fairly quickly (but not so quickly they'll be a nuisance in my experience), fairly active during the day (meaning they could become tasty snacks for the frogs)

Armadillidium versicolor: get to about 1/3" in size, but breed fairly slowly and never really surface during the day, which could be a good thing but means I won't see them do their work

All my Porcelliio species are likely to get too big and are probably too prolific to put in with frogs. 

Thoughts?


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## fishingguy12345 (Apr 7, 2019)

Based upon this i think I might give it a try with some Armadillidium klugii , my tank is going to be for Ameerega bassleri "Chrome", they would keep the Isopod population in check. 



Pumilo said:


> I know more than a handful of people that use any of the morphs of P. scaber as a janitorial crew. Not necessarily a good idea with thumbnails or pums, but with tincs, many people use big isopods. With big frogs, they do a bigger job keeping populations in check, because they will do their best to eat all the babies and juvies they can find. Populations can get out of whack in vivs containing small species of frogs.


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## xdfireguy (Jun 23, 2020)

Thanks for posting that quote! I have tremendous respect for him when it comes to isopods. This is what I was planning also (a dwarf iso and a larger species), but didn't realize the population control issue. Glad to see the larger frogs keep them in check. I didn't even consider the young isopods being food.

It sounds like combining dwarf/non-dwarf is something that should generally be avoided by beginners like myself. Feel free to correct me if I am wrong, but some experience may be beneficial to make sure that things don't run away. I am rethinking my plans at this stage but will be tuning in to learn more.


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## fishingguy12345 (Apr 7, 2019)

xdfireguy said:


> It sounds like combining dwarf/non-dwarf is something that should generally be avoided by beginners like myself. Feel free to correct me if I am wrong, but some experience may be beneficial to make sure that things don't run away. I am rethinking my plans at this stage but will be tuning in to learn more.


if you want to keep multiple kinds of Isopods in with your frogs there's no reason not to, but you'll need to research the Isopods that are likely to survive in the tank AND not be a pest to the frogs. It's the only thing keeping me from adding some of my Armadillidium klugii into a frog tank immediately. They might be a nuisance to the future frogs', especially if they get a couple months' head start on the frogs.

I would recommend staying safe and going with just the dwarfs for your first tanks.


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## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

Definitely make sure you want them in there, first. Any of the P. scaber have been used many times for large frogs.
When I tried them with thumbnails, eventually they did become a problem. With virtually no population control, they eventually just became too many. They began to have to compete for food. When they get hungry, if you don't supply food, they'll take it where they can. If there's nothing left to decompose, they can take a liking to a particular live plant in your viv. Mine had very good taste, and would only eat my jewel orchids. 
Eventually, I started drowning pits for them to get the populations back under control, but I could never fully eliminate them.
A drowning pit is a 2 or 4 oz deli cup, half filled with water, with a few flakes of fish food as an attractant. They fall in and can't get out. They are shallow enough that a frog can easily get out. Once the get a kill or three in them, there effectiveness really takes off (from the smell). Don't wait too long to dump and change the water, (again, the smell).

Do NOT try zebras in vivariums. They need it particularly arid. I killed 90% of my colony trying to keep them like P. scaber. 

Do NOT try dairy cows in vivariums. They really love meaty things. Until I hear back from others who have tried it, I would NOT trust Dairy Cows. (But they are pretty cool). 

Someone I trust from the Colorado FB group has also assured me that many are using the Powder Blues and Powder Oranges successfully. They are the fastest reproducing isopod I've ever seen. Do NOT try them with thumbs and pums.


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## fishingguy12345 (Apr 7, 2019)

Pumilo said:


> Definitely make sure you want them in there, first. Any of the P. scaber have been used many times for large frogs.
> 
> When I tried them with thumbnails, eventually they did become a problem. With virtually no population control, they eventually just became too many. They began to have to compete for food. When they get hungry, if you don't supply food, they'll take it where they can. If there's nothing left to decompose, they can take a liking to a particular live plant in your viv. Mine had very good taste, and would only eat my jewel orchids.
> 
> ...


Thanks Doug.

Some experience from me:

Dairy cows: definite no for dart frogs. I had them with my crested geckos (who would happily munch on them and are nocturnal to be out when the Isopods are out too) and the population still took off, and they love high protein food.

Powder blues: completely take over a vivarium, fast breeding, don't come out of the leaf litter during the day (thus not giving the dart frogs a chance to keep the population under control).

If I do end up adding some different Isopods into my tank I'll update this thread periodically.


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## Fahad (Aug 25, 2019)

I haven’t established powder orange or powder blue isopods beforehand in any tank, but I’ve put as many as 20 or 30 at a time into a viv in an attempt to and my adult terribilis exterminate them every time.


They just can’t get established in the face of the brutal savagery and mayhem inflicted by the Mighty Terribilis.


*Edit: these are adult terribilis, 5 at a time. Sub-adults destroyed them too, wouldn’t use them with younger froglets.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## DarciD (May 23, 2020)

Can i pop in on this one with a newbie question on isopods but related to a different frog? It can go ahead and be deleted if not. 

I’ve been wanting to put bigger isopods in with the four mossy frogs I had not considered that they would overpopulate so this thread is timely for me before I go and buy a different species other than the dwarf white. 

The mossies will be fed crickets. I would have assumed they would consume some of the larger isopods too (I expect the froglets to pillage the pill bugs i have so only half my culture is going in to start) but maybe I’ll wrong. 

Does anyone have experience with the bigger isopods and bigger (nocturnal) frogs?


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