# Wild Isopods



## whitetiprs13

Are wild collected Isopods safe to use?

I have collected a few of the guys in the picture at my work where I know there are no pesticides used, because of what we do my boss does not like to use anything around the building. I know some can take over a year to mature so I wasn't thinking of culturing them but rather just QT them for a few months then adding them to the viv.


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## ConFuCiuZ

I would rather not. Even though they are pesticide free, maybe they can carry diseases and such. I wouldnt suggest any wild caught isopods. Other board members would chime in.


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## Rain_Frog

I use them. That's how I seeded most of my vivariums with isopods.


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## Golden State Mantellas

For culturing, I don't recommend _A. vulgare_, they are slower to mature and thus take longer to reproduce.

If you're going to culture, try and find some _P. scaber_ or another faster maturing/breeding species.


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## hypostatic

You know, JeremyHuff was actually selling a type of these as "native sp. rollie pollie" and he said that they breed really well. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/pl...ds/83391-feeder-trio-sale-ends-june-15-a.html

Maybe contact him and ask for tips in culturing these guys, assuming there's any difference from regular isopods


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## JimO

That species, aka Pill Bugs, has a pretty hard exoskeleton, so they would be suitable as a cleanup crew, but even the juveniles would likely be tougher for the frogs to digest.


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## whitetiprs13

I was planning on using them more as a cleanup crew rather then for food. 

I am keeping them in a small ziplock container with some leaf litter and cardboard for now. I will just keep adding more to the continer as I collect them, only about 10 in there right now.


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## Pumilo

hypostatic said:


> You know, JeremyHuff was actually selling a type of these as "native sp. rollie pollie" and he said that they breed really well. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/pl...ds/83391-feeder-trio-sale-ends-june-15-a.html
> 
> Maybe contact him and ask for tips in culturing these guys, assuming there's any difference from regular isopods


Studies show A vulgare (possibly what most of America thinks of as the common rollie pollie, pill bug, or wood lice) as taking 14 months to reach sexual maturity. You can collect adults and have a breeding culture, but it will take the next generation 14 months to establish and begin breeding. This is going to make for a very slow producing/slow growing culture.

Keep in mind every time you introduce something from outdoors, you are taking a risk of introducing other bugs or pathogens.


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## hypostatic

Well, I've heard of that bit of info before, but I figured that if someone as experienced as Jeremy was having good success with them, they could be a good species to use. I remember Ed said one way to cut down on contaminants would be to serially culture a species over several generations, which is one reason why I suggested the OP contacting Jeremy -- to see how he's done it.


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## Ed

A. vulgare can take much longer than 14 months depending on whether or not they respond to seasonal conditioning.. for example this study indicates that reproduction for most of the population occurs at 23 months and some that survive past that point, have a second reproductive event at 35 months..... 
see Oecologia, Volume 89, Number 1 - SpringerLink 

The time may be shorter in cultures kept in areas where there aren't seasonal light and temperature changes. 

Ed


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## Golden State Mantellas

Thanks Ed and Doug, I was looking for the document that I had read that referenced 18-24 months for sexual maturity in A. vulgare, you beat me to it!


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## Pumilo

hypostatic said:


> Well, I've heard of that bit of info before, but I figured that if someone as experienced as Jeremy was having good success with them, they could be a good species to use. I remember Ed said one way to cut down on contaminants would be to serially culture a species over several generations, which is one reason why I suggested the OP contacting Jeremy -- to see how he's done it.





Ed said:


> A. vulgare can take much longer than 14 months depending on whether or not they respond to seasonal conditioning.. for example this study indicates that reproduction for most of the population occurs at 23 months and some that survive past that point, have a second reproductive event at 35 months.....
> see Oecologia, Volume 89, Number 1 - SpringerLink
> 
> The time may be shorter in cultures kept in areas where there aren't seasonal light and temperature changes.
> 
> Ed


That would make it just a little tricky to use this particular isopod safely. Several generations...let's say several is 3 generations. If we are generous and average the study I found with Ed's study, then we have an average maturation time of 18.5 months. So if you collect wild adults you could feasibly get breeding of your first generation right away. Your second generation is 18.5 months away. Your third generation is 37 months away. So if we consider the third generation safe, this little project only takes a little over 3 years, to produce a bug that might just be getting to the point it can be considered truly safe for our vivs. Unless Ed is right (what are the chances? ) in which case the "safe" generation will take closer to 4 years. Of course, we have to keep in mind that after all that, they are probably not as useful as the varieties commonly kept in our vivs. Their harder shell may make them less palatable than the dwarf varieties. Also, keep in mind that a fast producing, dwarf variety will fairly quickly (in comparison) reproduce to fill the demand for janitors. 
Personally, the risk and the time/labor involved in cleaning a slower producing, not as edible, bug, doesn't make me want to run out and begin production. I would much rather have someone else breed through several generations and provide a bug that is faster producing, more edible, and safer (having gone through possibly hundreds or more generations in the hobby). The fact that somebody else, in fact, hundreds of "somebody else'" have viv tested them as safe and disease free, is a big bonus in my book.


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## whitetiprs13

I have decided to let the little guys go after reading what everyone has said. I would rather be safe then sorry and will stick with the other isopods that I am currently culturing, orange and dwarf purple.


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## Rain_Frog

if you put wet cardboard underneath a pot in the shade, you'll attract a ton of them. My tincs eat them sometimes.


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## Cathulhu 666

Rain_Frog said:


> I use them. That's how I seeded most of my vivariums with isopods.


I have a few generations in i have collected some baby's from my worm bin after introducing a few mature ones I removed a few babys and started a culture will these get along with tropical whites and fully grown won't harm a baby dart frog? I want to put em in to seed my enclosure faster because i gotta wait on the springtails and dwarf whites to up their numbers because when I ordered them from Josh's frogs not enough came alive or I just can't see them seems how they're so freaking tiny only found like a few and I have only three put directly into the vivarium so i was wanting to add these guys in seems how i can easily go down stairs if there's not enough in the culture and collect some baby's from my worm bin


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## TeddytheFinger

They ate all my jewel orchids...


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