Porcellio bolivari - Care

[CynthiasCreatures]

When I first received this species I noticed a lot of people struggling with their husbandry and care.
This made me slightly paranoid since they are not a cheap isopod to add to my collection.
Having them for a few months now, I have been very successful with having them thrive and even producing offspring. I thought I would share how I have been keeping them so that any new keeper or current keeper can compare notes.

I will share images of their enclosure as well.

I’ve been keeping 10 adults in a critter keeper style enclosure so it has plenty of ventilation.
They’re on DRY cocofiber with a corner of the enclosure having some damp sphagnum moss.
On the top I keep several pieces of large bark for them to hide under.
I give them loose leafy greens once a week and remove any molding food.

As always, there are springtails in the enclosure.

 

[schmiggle]

Huh, I read somewhere else that the person kept them damper and with much less ventilation than is standard for a Spanish isopod and was very successful. Maybe ventilation was never the issue in the first place?

 

[CynthiasCreatures]

Huh, I read somewhere else that the person kept them damper and with much less ventilation than is standard for a Spanish isopod and was very successful. Maybe ventilation was never the issue in the first place?

There was one YouTuber I watched that had them in the same type of environment (high humidity, and lower ventilation) and he was saying they weren't thriving. Very odd, I wonder also if it lies with where the isopods were purchased from as well.

 

[schmiggle]

What are your temps like? Cave environments have extremely stable temperatures--maybe that's the secret?

I do wonder if it might have to do with gut microbes or something. I know that one thought about why the giant green pill millipedes haven't thrived in captivity is that their gut microbiome is specialized to break down lignin and it dies in transit. However, these dies just eat detritus, so I sort of doubt that's it.

 

[CynthiasCreatures]

What are your temps like? Cave environments have extremely stable temperatures--maybe that's the secret?

I do wonder if it might have to do with gut microbes or something. I know that one thought about why the giant green pill millipedes haven't thrived in captivity is that their gut microbiome is specialized to break down lignin and it dies in transit. However, these dies just eat detritus, so I sort of doubt that's it.

I’m in Florida and my house temp is always 75-83 F
During cold snaps I always add a heat of that regulates around those temps too.
I know the YouTuber I watched is in Canada, and that’s very very north. It could have something to do with that as well.

 

[schmiggle]

I can definitely believe that. Could also be some combination--things like fungal infections are more likely in cool, damp temperatures than in warm, damp temperatures, at least in plants. Anyway, if it's working for you, clearly at least one viable method is 75-83F, high ventilation, dry coco fiber, some damp sphagnum, leafy greens.

Two questions:

• What greens are you feeding, and do you use a cuttlebone? I know a lot of people like cuttlebones for calcium, and also that spinach, for example, has high calcium. Wondering how important calcium is in the diet.
• Do they hang out in the whole tank, or do they spend more time in some areas than others?

 

[CynthiasCreatures]

I can definitely believe that. Could also be some combination--things like fungal infections are more likely in cool, damp temperatures than in warm, damp temperatures, at least in plants. Anyway, if it's working for you, clearly at least one viable method is 75-83F, high ventilation, dry coco fiber, some damp sphagnum, leafy greens.

Two questions:

• What greens are you feeding, and do you use a cuttlebone? I know a lot of people like cuttlebones for calcium, and also that spinach, for example, has high calcium. Wondering how important calcium is in the diet.
• Do they hang out in the whole tank, or do they spend more time in some areas than others?

I offer:
- green/red leaf
- romaine
- Apple
- carrot
- sweet potato

But I notice they’re more interested in the leafy greens than anything else
I do have a piece of cuttlebone in there as well.

They’re always underneath the bark, they’re never anywhere else.
That’s why I’ll also place the food underneath there since it seems they’re comfortable being in one place.

Hope that answers your questions!

 

[Elytra and Antenna]

Mine have about 3.5" by 1/2" open vent and are one of the older cultures out there. Less ventilation they die, too much and it's far too easy to forget a single watering and kill them all. I only feed them meat based pellets, they seemed mostly uninterested in fruits and veggies and I grew tired of removing the dried remains.

 

[CynthiasCreatures]

Mine have about 3.5" by 1/2" open vent and are one of the older cultures out there. Less ventilation they die, too much and it's far too easy to forget a single watering and kill them all. I only feed them meat based pellets, they seemed mostly uninterested in fruits and veggies and I grew tired of removing the dried remains.

Thank you for the advice! I’ll definitely start offering more high protein pelleted diet for them.

 

[Kazeres]

The key for spanish porcellios is CALCIUM. They live in arid regions with soils rich in calcium. Limestone, gypsum, etc.

If you keep your porcellios in a plain fiber coir, or dried moss they will die. They need a source of calcium.

I use a substrate 50% organic and 50% silty or loamy soil (rich in calcium of course).

 

[Elytra and Antenna]

The key for spanish porcellios is CALCIUM. They live in arid regions with soils rich in calcium. Limestone, gypsum, etc.

If you keep your porcellios in a plain fiber coir, or dried moss they will die. They need a source of calcium.

I use a substrate 50% organic and 50% silty or loamy soil (rich in calcium of course).

Possibly at least partly true for some other species but the subject of this thread is one of the few that shows no interest in calcium sources.

 

[CynthiasCreatures]

The key for spanish porcellios is CALCIUM. They live in arid regions with soils rich in calcium. Limestone, gypsum, etc.

If you keep your porcellios in a plain fiber coir, or dried moss they will die. They need a source of calcium.

I use a substrate 50% organic and 50% silty or loamy soil (rich in calcium of course).

Would keeping a cuttlebone in there for them suffice? Or do they show no interest in that supplement.
I don’t mind switching them over to a calcium rich substrate, I’m just seeing if that’s also an option.

 

[CynthiasCreatures]

Possibly at least partly true for some other species but the subject of this thread is one of the few that shows no interest in calcium sources.

Oh, so this species isn’t that dependent on a calcium rich substrate?

 

[Elytra and Antenna]

Oh, so this species isn’t that dependent on a calcium rich substrate?

I've never seen them eat the dirt in their cage and it as been in there for years.