# Wood louce Colonies



## Deli (Jun 24, 2008)

About 1 month ago, I started a "test" culture of local wood lice (Porcellio scaber) just to see how easy they were to breed. Today when I gave them some potato shavings, I counted 5 little wood lice running around. =D

soil:
1 part organic topsoil
1 part sand
1/2 part dried sphag

Im using 2 4x4 inch unprinted cardboard pieces for them to hide under.

Been feeding Grass clippings (chem free), Mag leaves and potato shavings.

Guess Im doing something right. lol.

I plan on getting some tropical woodlice (Trichorhina tomentosa) to culture for my future frogs.


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

I cultivate the dwarf tropical, dwarf temperate and spanish orange, and they all seem to really like cucumber as well as beech leaves. I get great breeding, from the orange especially.
Out of all the foods Ive tried, the cucumber has worked best for me. As for substrate, they are in coco chips/coir with leaves and pieces of corrougated cardboard


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## Jason DeSantis (Feb 2, 2006)

My experience with woodlice is to put them in a hardwood mulch. Since they like wood I put hardwood mulch mixed with a little coco fiber. On top just add a couple pieces of cardboard changed out every week. I used to get tons of woodlice with this method. Oh and I used to put crushed leaves on top as well. This always worked best for woodlice and springs.
Jason


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## Deli (Jun 24, 2008)

Thanks for the tips =D

Now, theres about 5x as many little woodlice running around.


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## earthfrog (May 18, 2008)

They do real well in my tank if I keep adding dried leaves to the substrate---I have oodles of them...


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## Deli (Jun 24, 2008)

I'll probably seed my 40 with then when I re-do it. I used too much dry moss in the substrate and holds too much water.

Next time I'll just use Coir and fine cypress mulch.


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## twohoops21 (Sep 17, 2008)

stupid question, but are you feeding these to tincs or thumbs? if tincs love these things, i will try it. they are all over the landscaping in my yard. looks like i might have a new food item for them! lol


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## Deli (Jun 24, 2008)

Im just experimenting with them for now, But eventually I'll use them as a staple (along with FF) for 4 P.Vitattus and 2 E. Tricolor " Isabella". When I say "them" I mean the tropical variety.


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## jclee (Jul 13, 2009)

I accidentally fostered a colony of wood lice in my big eyed treefrog tank when I put in a slipper orchid; the few that were already in the tank loved the potting mix so much that they kept reproducing. I've since removed the orchid from the tank, but if you happen to have potting mixes for orchids requiring fast drainage, it would probably be a great substrate for a woodlice colony.


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## hpglow (Jun 8, 2009)

Where do you get these things? Do you just catch them, or is there a site to order a starter kit?


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## jclee (Jul 13, 2009)

There probably are sites that sell them, though I didn't find any at a quick glance. I did find an online caresheet if you're interested: Gordon's Woodlice Care Sheet 
(I'm sure someone on this site can recommend a link to a distributor of some kind.) These are very common detritivores that prefer damp, shady places, like amid leaf piles, or even underneath outdoor flower pots, so they should be easy to find once you know what you're looking for. As arthropods, they have gills that have to stay damp to breathe, so don't let your substrate dry out too much, or they'll die off.

I introduced a couple to my tank (again, I don't have any dart frogs -- only BETF), and they've reproduced a lot on their own. I have read that they nibble live moss, so that might be something to keep in mind. (I just added moss to my tank, and have not witnessed the nibbling yet, so I can't verify.)

If you find a handful, and set up the right environment, the rest should take care of itself.


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## Deli (Jun 24, 2008)

I believe Vivarium Concepts sells the tropical variants.


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