ID and care help please, pill millipede found in Hong Kong

[k0ella]

Title.

These little dudes were accidentally caught with isopods a few days ago. The site where I got them is fairly far, so it would be unlikely I can put them back anytime soon. If care is somewhat simple and similar to isopods, I’d like to keep them in their own enclosure to keep them happy and alive. Right now they live in a container with a moss moisture gradient, springtails, plenty of leaf litter, and egg carton hides. They also have a substrate mix of flake soil, potting soil, chopped leaves, composted sheep manure, chopped moss and cuttlebone powder. Currently feeding Repashy bug burger.

Can someone identify the species and what care they would need, if possible? Is my current setup lacking in any areas? Any tips? All help is appreciated, thank you!

 

[kadupul]

Those are fabulous!

 

[PillipedeBreeder]

Hello,
these appear to be Hyleoglomeris sp.
There‘s even been a new species described recently, so yours might be an already known or possibly new species. I can’t tell unfortunately. However I know someone who works with japanese Hyleoglomeris. He might be the author of the paper describing the new species... do you want me to give contact details?
-
You have to be careful with the substrate, FlakeSoil mixed with manure and leaves could easily start fermenting again and this would mean a death sentence for your pillipedes if not noticed quickly.
Pure FlakeSoil (preferably long fermented, BlackSoil), a calcium source, with some decaying wood, decaying leaves and living moss ontop, as well as some lichens, would have been my optimal choice.
Just for reference.
However, the sub you choose to mix could work well too!
Though there’s still the risk.

Temperatures and moisture like in their habitat, however when temperatures go under 5-0 degrees Celsius, Glomeris in Europe start digging deep (30cm+) into the soil, to avoid freezing.
I imagine these Hyleoglomeris might do the same and since this would require a really deep substrate layer, I would just keep them at around 4/5 degrees Celsius, to avoid a big material cost and still possible freezing reaching them.

Best regards,
PillipedeBreeder

 

[k0ella]

Hello,
these appear to be Hyleoglomeris sp.
There‘s even been a new species described recently, so yours might be an already known or possibly new species. I can’t tell unfortunately. However I know someone who works with japanese Hyleoglomeris. He might be the author of the paper describing the new species... do you want me to give contact details?
-
You have to be careful with the substrate, FlakeSoil mixed with manure and leaves could easily start fermenting again and this would mean a death sentence for your pillipedes if not noticed quickly.
Pure FlakeSoil (preferably long fermented, BlackSoil), a calcium source, with some decaying wood, decaying leaves and living moss ontop, as well as some lichens, would have been my optimal choice.
Just for reference.
However, the sub you choose to mix could work well too!
Though there’s still the risk.

Temperatures and moisture like in their habitat, however when temperatures go under 5-0 degrees Celsius, Glomeris in Europe start digging deep (30cm+) into the soil, to avoid freezing.
I imagine these Hyleoglomeris might do the same and since this would require a really deep substrate layer, I would just keep them at around 4/5 degrees Celsius, to avoid a big material cost and still possible freezing reaching them.

Best regards,
PillipedeBreeder

Sure for the contact details and thank you so much for the tips! What kind of supplemental feeding would you use and how often? I have Repashy Bug Burger, Morning Wood, dried shrimp at hand. Or will veggies be better?

 

[PillipedeBreeder]

Hello,

Sure for the contact details and thank you so much for the tips! What kind of supplemental feeding would you use and how often? I have Repashy Bug Burger, Morning Wood, dried shrimp at hand. Or will veggies be better?

You can try „morning wood“, I know a Zephronia species eats it. The other options might be eaten too.

A new pill millipede species of the genus <I>Hyleoglomeris</I> Verhoeff 1910 (Glomerida: Glomeridae) from the Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan

J-STAGE

www.jstage.jst.go.jp

That‘s the paper, the author is Nobuyuki Nakama, he has bred japanese Hyleoglomeris sp.

Best regards.