# purple isopods



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

Anyone working with Purple isopods?


----------



## GBIII (Mar 20, 2008)

Julio said:


> Anyone working with Purple isopods?


Purple Isopds? You haven't been eating the mushrooms outta your viv's again...Have you?

lol. Haven't seen those yet.

George


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

Hhahah, George ok you got me, the shrooms are making me see colors. There is a species that is purple is a tropical species, i am getting some soon, i was just wondering if anyone out there was working with them.


----------



## Boondoggle (Dec 9, 2007)

Man, post some pics when you get them because I have NEVER heard of purples.


----------



## jubjub47 (Sep 9, 2008)

Julio said:


> Hhahah, George ok you got me, the shrooms are making me see colors. There is a species that is purple is a tropical species, i am getting some soon, i was just wondering if anyone out there was working with them.


Are these from that guy we were talking to last night? I was very skeptical about that whole conversation so if he actually called you at noon I'm gonna be shocked.


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

yeah Tim, he did call me around noon.


----------



## GBIII (Mar 20, 2008)

I'm still not sure Julio isn't just seeing purple dots moving around... but hey, I'd like to see them either way.lol


----------



## McBobs (Apr 26, 2007)

Julio. Who are you getting these from? I've heard of them before as well and have always been kinda curious about them. Honestly, its been awhile since anyone has mentioned them and I forgot they were out there. 

Let me know if you get some and how they do for you. I might have to follow you in this venture. 

-Matt


----------



## Bob Fraser (Nov 21, 2007)

Check with Randy Seiler "Dartsrmi". Think I saw them at his table at last show in 
Harve DeGrace Md.


----------



## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

The ones that I know of that are really purple in color are the ones that are infected with a iridiovirus which kills them.. Do you have a species or picture? 

Ed


----------



## nathan (Jul 24, 2009)

McBobs said:


> Julio. Who are you getting these from? I've heard of them before as well and have always been kinda curious about them. Honestly, its been awhile since anyone has mentioned them and I forgot they were out there.
> 
> Let me know if you get some and how they do for you. I might have to follow you in this venture.
> 
> -Matt


There was a guy in the chat talking about his bug company or something like that. And how they used to supply fear factor with their bugs . . . Ill be interested to see how these do ,and get more info when you get them Julio . . .


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

They will be coming this week, i will let you know when i get them in.


----------



## gary1218 (Dec 31, 2005)

Julio,

Are these purple isopods similar to the orange isopods where they're mainly in the viv for maintenance purposes as opposed to a food scource?


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

from what i understand they can be both, the person who i am getting them from actually sells them as a food source, but they don't reproduce that fast so feeding them out woudl be just a treat.


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

Ok so i got them in today, they are a little smaller then the dwarf white sopods, so its hard to get a good pic of them, i will try and post some tonight.


----------



## gary1218 (Dec 31, 2005)

We don't want pics. Just send us all a sample of them


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

gary1218 said:


> We don't want pics. Just send us all a sample of them


lol, it will be a while til i get them goign to split out.


----------



## Topete (Sep 27, 2009)

Curious as well...


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

here is a pic, is hard to really capture their color, they are more purple then the pic shows, plus they are not fully grown yet so their color is not fully colored up.


----------



## SmackoftheGods (Jan 28, 2009)

smaller than the dwarf white? I want some....


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

SmackoftheGods said:


> smaller than the dwarf white? I want some....


Yeah, they are defnitely smaller then the dwarf white, they make a great food source for darts, but it will be a while before mine get to that point, and from what i was told they are a tropical species that need to be kept above 70 degrees.


----------



## NathanB (Jan 21, 2008)

how much where they julio?


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

a bit pricey, but they are not very common, $50 for 100


----------



## McBobs (Apr 26, 2007)

Julio said:


> a bit pricey, but they are not very common, $50 for 100


HOLY COW! Thats a bit price prohibitive for a college student like me! 

Make sure to breed and culture them like crazy. If they work well as feeders, especially if they're as small as they are, they would be great for thumbnails. You need to flood the market if they're easily bred. Need to bring the prices down a bit before I can try my hand with them!

-Matt


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

yeah, if i start to sell cultures, they will def not be as high as that.


----------



## nathan (Jul 24, 2009)

Julio was that $50 shipped? Didnt those come from Thailand?



Oh and hey I have gormet springs I can sell you for 25 cents each


----------



## McBobs (Apr 26, 2007)

Julio said:


> yeah, if i start to sell cultures, they will def not be as high as that.


Good deal. I'd definitely be interested in giving them a shot.

-Matt


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

Lets hope that they DON'T have iridovirus and they breed faster than the whites do.
Did you get a price break on 300?


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

nathan said:


> Julio was that $50 shipped? Didnt those come from Thailand?
> No they didn't coem from Thailand, they came from, mmm not sure, but i have to look at the shipping label, but they were in the US.
> 
> 
> ...





McBobs said:


> Good deal. I'd definitely be interested in giving them a shot.
> 
> -Matt


Sure thing, contact me in a few months. 



frogparty said:


> Lets hope that they DON'T have iridovirus and they breed faster than the whites do.
> Did you get a price break on 300?


I did get a price break on them, but not much, i hope they dont' have iridovirus as well, we shoudl know in a month or two how fast they produce.


----------



## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

I don't think they have the virus.. apparently the purple caused by the virus is a much more lavender looking color. It doesn't look like that under the camera picture. How does it look in real life? 

Ed


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

well, they are not super purple, just slighty a little more then the pic shows, there is a bigger species that i have seen pics of that are super purple, but those prob have the virus.


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

So funny, because I began studying iridoviruses today in my microbiology class. Made me think of these. 
"You know you're a frogger when"..............


----------



## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Julio said:


> well, they are not super purple, just slighty a little more then the pic shows, there is a bigger species that i have seen pics of that are super purple, but those prob have the virus.


Thanks for the clarification Julio. 

Ed


----------



## snmreptiles (Feb 26, 2004)

Any update on how this are doing? Thanks!!

Mike
Welcome to the home of


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

holy crap, i forgot all about them, i have had a lot on mine lately with work and all, looks like i lost the culture, that stinks!


----------



## snmreptiles (Feb 26, 2004)

LOL...Same thing happened with my silver springs, outta sight outta mind...Sorry about the culture!


----------



## Eric Walker (Aug 22, 2009)

wheres the kickin yourself in the ass smilie


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

that sucks though, i should have taken them to the office so i can have another thing to play with. I gotta see if i can get more.


----------



## Eric Walker (Aug 22, 2009)

did they come from the other side of the pond somewhere?


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

no they came from someone in the midwest, dont remember where


----------



## pbenner (Sep 10, 2008)

I don't mean to rain on a parade, but those look very much like the wild wood lice I remember finding when I was a kid in Kansas. They're not very exotic, and to be honest, they can be found just about anywhere if you know where to look.

They are a purple-ish color, more grey than anything. From what I remember the females got upto 5mm in length, and carried their eggs and newly hatched young on their underside.

Thoughts?

Paul


----------



## Eric Walker (Aug 22, 2009)

hmmm. maby dartsami could find some?


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

pbenner said:


> I don't mean to rain on a parade, but those look very much like the wild wood lice I remember finding when I was a kid in Kansas. They're not very exotic, and to be honest, they can be found just about anywhere if you know where to look.
> 
> They are a purple-ish color, more grey than anything. From what I remember the females got upto 5mm in length, and carried their eggs and newly hatched young on their underside.
> 
> ...


these are actually smaller then that, so i doubt that they are the same ones you founds as a kid.


----------



## Jarhead_2016 (Jan 7, 2010)

ill give randy a call and see if i can get some of these .
-scotty


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

hear some pics next to a ruler for size comparison.


----------



## earthfrog (May 18, 2008)

Just curious, how long would it take an iridovirus to kill isopods, so one would know that their isopods are not the ones with such a virus? I'm not sure the particular shade of purple would be such a good indicator.


----------



## JimO (May 14, 2010)

I just ordered some from BugsinCyberspace.com that look the same, and they're charging $10 for a starter culture with 20+ bugs. Here's the link.

buy Jungle Micropods feeder sow bug

Edit - I just realized that this thread in from last August.  But, I left the post in case anyone is looking for a place to buy these little guys.


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

i will have plenty of them at forg day for $20 a culture with approx 100 or more in each culture


----------



## earthfrog (May 18, 2008)

Welcome To Planet Porcellio


----------



## frogmanchu (Feb 18, 2011)

jim thanks for linking that man im going to order some of those and some of the other isos that they have


----------



## froggymike (Jan 11, 2010)

I have been culturing them for a while, but just found this page. How are you guys culturing them. I keep mine in organic dirt and coco husk. I feed them shrooms and other scrap veggies.


----------



## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

earthfrog said:


> Just curious, how long would it take an iridovirus to kill isopods, so one would know that their isopods are not the ones with such a virus? I'm not sure the particular shade of purple would be such a good indicator.


They usually don't survive to reproduce.


----------



## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

froggymike said:


> I have been culturing them for a while, but just found this page. How are you guys culturing them. I keep mine in organic dirt and coco husk. I feed them shrooms and other scrap veggies.


I have mine in a mix that is similar to my tank substrate. Orchid bark, organic dirt, coco fiber, leaves, a bit of LECA. I feed them veggie scraps and fish flakes. Just recently got this culture set up but they seem to be doing well.


----------



## stemcellular (Jun 26, 2008)

I keep mine in a sandy, soil substrate with lots of tree fern and leaf litter. They get a whole halfed orange every few weeks and are exploding.


----------



## earthfrog (May 18, 2008)

Ed said:


> They usually don't survive to reproduce.


I was just wondering since I got a culture of 'mixed isopods' for the purpose of seeding the tank---this included purple, orange, black, striped and dwarf white. Upon inspection months later, it seems the dwarf whites are the only ones left.


----------



## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

The other isopods (for me at least) do better with some amount of air flow while the whites do best in a totally closed culture. 

Ed


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

earthfrog said:


> I was just wondering since I got a culture of 'mixed isopods' for the purpose of seeding the tank---this included purple, orange, black, striped and dwarf white. Upon inspection months later, it seems the dwarf whites are the only ones left.


Mixed cultures are a great theory, but in practice, I've found that with springtails anyway, one species eventually takes over. I have talked to people that say the same about isopods. In my vivs, I can get several species going, so maybe it's a matter of space.


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

Ive got a successful mixed isopod culture going. Dwarf grey, dwarf white, and an unidentified wormy shaped one I got from Tor Linbo at microcosm. Seems to be doing just fine. I use micron filters to let some air in, but it is pretty stagnant in there. You can tell the dwarf whites, and the ones I got from Tor like the conditions better, because they are breeding much faster than the dwarf greys. I only have a mixed culture set up to make it easier to seed vivs with multiple species at a time, and to save space.


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

frogparty said:


> Ive got a successful mixed isopod culture going. Dwarf grey, dwarf white, and an unidentified wormy shaped one I got from Tor Linbo at microcosm. Seems to be doing just fine. I use micron filters to let some air in, but it is pretty stagnant in there. You can tell the dwarf whites, and the ones I got from Tor like the conditions better, because they are breeding much faster than the dwarf greys. I only have a mixed culture set up to make it easier to seed vivs with multiple species at a time, and to save space.


Cool, is it shoebox sized or what? Cultured on that bark you've mentioned?


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

yeah, its about shoebox sized, and I am culturing them on the bark. The dwarf whites and the unidentified isopods seem more subterranean in habit, while the dwarf greys spend a lot more time on the surface layer, and even up on the sides of the culture. Probably want more airflow like Ed was saying. I culture them seperately as well in smaller "master" cultures, and usually just split them when the get too packed with individuals into my mixed culture. 
I notice that all the Porcellio I have cultured prefer more airflow, and a slightly drier substrate, while the dwarf whites and the other unidentified isopods prefer a moister substrate. These also seem to have an exoskeleton that is softer as adults than any of the porcellio.
In a viv with a good substrate structure, its probably a lot easier to provide more optimal conditions for them all, rather than a mixed culture in a container


----------



## Golden State Mantellas (Mar 12, 2011)

I'll take some pics tonight comparing _Porcellio scaber_ infected with IIV and an uninfected animal. The difference is very noticeable.


----------



## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

cool! I want to see those pics. Where did you get iridovirus infected animals from?


----------



## gary1218 (Dec 31, 2005)

Other than the cool purple color, is there any advantage the purple isopods have over the orange isopods? I assume they both provide the same benefit in a viv.


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

gary1218 said:


> Other than the cool purple color, is there any advantage the purple isopods have over the orange isopods? I assume they both provide the same benefit in a viv.


They are much smaller, they max out at 3mm and are a better food source for the frogs i think.


----------



## JimO (May 14, 2010)

I have some orange isos and they are significantly larger as adults. The pictures that Julio provided showing them next to a ruler shows how small they are. An adult orange is probably 10-12 mm long. Even the larger Tinc morphs could not handle an adult orange, so I'd agree that the tiny purple variety (some call them micropods) are a really good food source. I plan to seed my pumilio vivs with them since newly morphed froglets can eat the juvenile micropods.


gary1218 said:


> Other than the cool purple color, is there any advantage the purple isopods have over the orange isopods? I assume they both provide the same benefit in a viv.


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

My biggest Giant oranges push 5/8" long not including the antenna! I like to put several different types in all my vivs. If anybody with purples wants to trade for other types, let me know!
One nice thing the oranges have going for them is that nobody is going to pick on them, leaving the breeding population free to breed. The babies are lunch!


----------



## earthfrog (May 18, 2008)

Pumilo said:


> My biggest Giant oranges push 5/8" long not including the antenna! I like to put several different types in all my vivs. If anybody with purples wants to trade for other types, let me know!
> One nice thing the oranges have going for them is that nobody is going to pick on them, leaving the breeding population free to breed. The babies are lunch!


Do they munch on the roots and leaves of some healthy plants, such as begonias?


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

earthfrog said:


> Do they munch on the roots and leaves of some healthy plants, such as begonias?


Susan I have heard that they can take a liking to a particular plant sometimes. Having enough fruits or veggies in there may eliminate that. I have not seen it with mine, but I have only had them in my vivs for a couple of months.


----------



## oddlot (Jun 28, 2010)

I have gotten a culture from julio and they are booming!They seem to move a little faster than the dwarf whites which my frogs love.

Thanks Again Julio!

Lou


----------



## gary1218 (Dec 31, 2005)

Julio said:


> They are much smaller, they max out at 3mm and are a better food source for the frogs i think.


OK.

So..................now I want some Julio  I won't be at Frog Day to pick them up. Any chance you could ship me one?

Also, when I first started looking into culturing isopods in general I remember reading that it was recommended to keep the cultures in the dark. Anybody do that?


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

mine all get some light that comes through the window. 
Gary pm me your info


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

gary1218 said:


> OK.
> 
> So..................now I want some Julio  I won't be at Frog Day to pick them up. Any chance you could ship me one?
> 
> Also, when I first started looking into culturing isopods in general I remember reading that it was recommended to keep the cultures in the dark. Anybody do that?


Hey Gary, I remember that conversation. Ed shot us down citing benefits of photo-periods, etc. Don't remember exactly what he said but it sounds like they are better off with regular day and night periods.


----------



## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

In a number of species, photoperiod affects several different things see for example (google cache is a wonderful tool) Can. J. Zool. 58(2): 235-240 (1980) 

Ed


----------



## JimO (May 14, 2010)

My order just came in and they are very nice. I don't imagine that I'll put them in with my Tincs or Auratus except to feed them out. I doubt even the adults would last long. It'd be really nice to establish them in the pumilio vivs though.


----------



## jacobi (Dec 15, 2010)

I discovered what looks like giant purple isopods in a backyard in Brooklyn.... The young ones are grayer, the larger ones, about 10-12mm, are more purple. The colour isn't coming out in the photos, I'll try to take better ones when I get home. When I pick them up though, they rolled into little balls. I've never seen an isopod do that. Any ideas on species or terrarium suitability? Should I bother or just keep them as a novelty? I guess if they have iridovirus, they'll die instead of breeding. I'll find out


----------



## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

the rolling method is common, however, keep in mind that the bright purple ones often carry a virus, which is the reason why they are so bright. They will still breed with the virus, but why take a chance at taking stuff from your yard and bring disease close to your frogs?


----------



## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

Besides, the real purples are a Costa Rica variety and would not have survived a US winter. Plus, I've never seen a Costa Rica Purple Isopod curl up. I've only seen that in US isopods. Some US Isopods take 14 months to mature sexually. That would make for one slow producing culture.


----------



## NickJR (Jul 28, 2011)

the purples are awesome i have them in all my vivs.. they are really small thumbnail food size.. i see them crawling in my tanks all the time. they spread/take over easy

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## Quickness (Jul 19, 2012)

Newbie question.. So would it be a good idea to seed my viv with purple isos and springs 2-3 weeks before adding thumbnails??

I know old thread, but hope it gets looked at


----------



## gary1218 (Dec 31, 2005)

Quickness said:


> Newbie question.. So would it be a good idea to seed my viv with purple isos and springs 2-3 weeks before adding thumbnails??
> 
> I know old thread, but hope it gets looked at


YES.

If you could do it a month before you added the frogs it would give the bugs even a better start at getting established in the viv.


----------



## Quickness (Jul 19, 2012)

gary1218 said:


> YES.
> 
> If you could do it a month before you added the frogs it would give the bugs even a better start at getting established in the viv.


I can wait a month. That is not an issue. Only issue I see coming up is after I get my setup finished, it will be hard enough waiting another two weeks. 

Thank you for the reply and I am picking the cultures up tonight. I already have 3 FF cultures going and I have not even started my build yet.


----------

