When I was 7 years old, I had an intuitive feeling that I could put Roly Polies in water and they would live. So I did. They crawled around under the water like it was nothing. Only 30 years later did I learn they have gills. I don't know how long they can live under water though.
View This They can indeed survive underwater for some time, though the terrestrial species can’t survive there forever. There are some semiaquatic species that seem to be equally at home in water or on land. 👍
It’s amazing how much the substrate and preferences have changed over the years. I’m not sure if I already made this comment on a different video but I’m still doing it
I inadvertently left out a short scene in which I explained that supplementary calcium is a good idea for isopods. I have given them crushed oyster shell, cuttlebone, and powdered reptile calcium...(edit) as well as powdered eggshell. Check out the links in the description if you are interested in purchasing isopod foods and supplies.
Thanks for this video. I feel kind of over whelmed as I'm very new to this. Learned a lot about dart frogs and aquarium set up but now I'm learning about isopods and springtails which is just another thing I need to understand better and master. I'm getting there lol... So thanks again for these great tips.
I do both. Seems to be working out good. What's annoying is those dust mites and grain mites. They seem to be stealing my isopod and spring tail food. PUNKS! But it's not a big deal for me luckily. I just try to collect those lil punks and throw them in with the dart frogs since they will eat them too lol. They never seem to out compete my isopods and spring tales. Who knows how bad the future will be but so far after 2 months of keeping spring tales and isopods they have been reproducing well : ) Get cheap cuddlefish bone stuff from a pet store or online shopping. Also look into repashy calcium. They have a great mix that has vitamins in it too. Better deal than the competition I have found. It's the one with the yellow gecko on the cover art of the container. Yeah Aquarimax! Thanks for the heart. I got 2 auratus dart frogs recently. The green and black camo kind. They are awesome. Goofy. Shy. But they are getting bigger and more silly lol. I got them from one of the Texas herp shows. Pretty sweet. Something interesting happened with bean beetles for me. I recently got some at a herp show and decided to start a fresher colony of bean beetles. Bought the beans and put them in there. BUT... Before I put them in there I calcium dusted them. THEY ALL DIED IN THE NEW COLONY : ( So I tried again without the dusting this time and it seems to have worked a lot better. Perhaps dusting isn't a good idea with bean beetles in particular. Works just fine with isopods and fruit flies but maybe it's bad for the bean beetles. And thanks again for your tips on fruit fly goo Aquarimax. I recently got into your vids on your recipe and added my own touch as well with the repashy bug powder activated with hot water for fruit flies. Works really well : )
I'm from Brazil and I'm not fluent in English, but I understood some information and enjoy so much the video! thanks for the content, isopods are cute :3
Great clip, Rus. I was at the creek this past spring, catching up some freshly hatched crays and scuds for the aquarium and must have scooped a little substrate containing a young caecidotea within. A few weeks ago I happened to be looking in my tank when a full sized aquatic iso came crawling out of the mud at the bottom and into the plants. I guess conditions were right! Never knew he was there. I enjoy watching him when he occasionally comes out of cover.
Davis Talhone Great find! The first species of isopod I ever kept and bred, over 30 years ago, were caecidotea. I scooped a number of them out of an irrigation canal and put them in my 10-gallon aquarium...soon there were lots of them!
@@Aquarimax I regret that mine is the lone specimen in my tank.. Having them multiply would be great. When the spring weather comes for us in the northeast, I'll see if I can't wrangle him up some cohorts. Quite an elusive guy. He disappears for long periods at a time, almost convinced he's no longer with us only to reappear to feed before going back into the detritus once more.
ZA Reptiles while powder blues and dwarf whites are certainly great for beginners, dairy cows are excellent beginner isopods as well! Zebras can be slightly more difficult, just because they require more ventilation. 👍
I bet! I remember before when I set up bird houses for wild sparrows (they used my roof instead, like always. lol) lots of Woodlice ended up hiding behind them in the shade kinda like it was one of those bug hotels.
I've got a Jar full of them. I had an issue with fruit fly maggots getting into their food once, but it's fixed now. For their substrate, I just used soil from the ground, sticks, and whenever they need it, I throw in some Succulent leaves (Non poisonous succulent) and sometimes small pieces of potatoes.
Fascinating. I got turned on to isopods and hexapods through an NPR podcast. I will no longer shrink back when I see these in my garden or even at night at seaside when fishing. Amazing.
I remember making a small farm of isopods in a big jar with moist. I would take it to school at 4th grade in a black bag and hiding it under the table. I would usually put in a few more isopods afterschool in the gardens. It was a great experience studying these creatures in a small DIY terrain.
@@Aquarimax I've kept them before, found them in my garden and they've bred ALOT (Canada Quebec). but they were all sorts of different variations mixed Toghether, I don't know if that poses a problem? Maybe you can tell me. But I'd like to try again with one specific species for a long while!
manachi koo koo They can sometimes do well with several species together, but generally one eventually outcompetes the other, especially in smaller enclosures. 😊👍
Thank you for this, I was worried cause I got my first culture of iso to go in with my iguana.. but I wanted to build them up before putting the 20 I got in there.. I love you are very visual on what everything looks like.
Leslie Williams building up the culture is always a good idea...and then you’ve got a backup. I’m glad you appreciate the visuals...One video can be worth 10,000 words. 😊👍
Great vid on the creatures. I never knew what they were called until now. I always had respect for them. I think I've seen three of the species you showed living here in the wild in Virginia.
Damian Bloodstone Thank you! Glad to know you share my interest in them. You may have more species in Virginia than I do here...it is fairly arid where I live, so I don’t see many wild isopods around, with the exception of Armadillidium vulgare, which tolerates a fair amount of aridity. 😊👍
Wow...I had no idea people would cultivate them, this is new to me... I use to revolve the plants pots here at home and get some to feed my fishes, they love eating those... I'm starting to pity them and having a different view knowing now that they're keep as pets, right now considering cultivating them too haha...Thanks for the video!!
Caio Cesar I know what you mean... I started keeping them as live food/ clean up crew...they are still excellent as a cleanup crew, but now I see them as pets as well.. 😊👍
Hi! Nice vid! I'd love it if you could maybe make a vid where you tell us an exact weekly routine telling us info about how often to feed, if you don't have soil what else we could use and how often you spray them ect. Thanks for making great videos and I look forward to future videos!
JTB Reptiles Glad to hear you are getting into Isopods and springtails! Not only do they completely transform bioactive vivaria, they are fascinating in their own right! 😊👍
@@Aquarimax they are soooo much fun! I've been in the aquarium hobby for years & never realized how much an aquarium ecosystem is related to the ecosystem of a Bio-Active setup. Binge warching your videos!
The BigSky Family Vlogs theynreally are quite similar. I love my aquariums, but I do find that bioactive vivariums are not only similar in many ways, but also easier in some respects. 👍
I’ve kept A. vulgare for arthropod research and they did very well with very wet regular soil with dead leaves and some pieces of log and branches with no rocks/wood chips
Bogs Fogs they are pretty adaptable creatures. Wet soil can sometimes (not always) go acidic or anaerobic, causing problems for the isopods, but it sounds like it worked in your case.
Hello, in the beginning of the video you talk about the size of the container and you let us know to use smaller sizes for beginning cultures. Do you have any video footage of transferring them safely into a larger container as they grow. I expect to build a few terrariums over the next year, and as I get to my last endeavor I hope to transfer that last of them to my final terrarium. I do not want to miss out on possible eggs or such.
That was awesome footage of them battling for the food toward the end of the video! I can't help but think they're super cute. I'm going to be checking out your website and seeing about ordering some supplies sometime, so thanks for all of the thorough information and links! I hope that your orange morph you guys were excited about continued to produce even more color morphed offspring! Edit: I had added a question here, but I found the answer online right after that, lol. Now I know that no, springtails cannot launch themselves out of my tank. :')
Nice videos! I caught 3 types of spiny isopods here in the Philippines(specifically in Luzon area) last week. They don't seem to like the fruits I gave em. Are they more sensitive maybe than of those isopods that you have? I'm planning to breed em btw.
Philippe Cantoria I hope you are able to get them breeding! They may have specific needs that differ from other isopods, but nearly all species are detritivores. I would love to see pics or video of them! Do they have plenty of leaf litter? You can try giving them some fish food...many isopods like it. 👍
Has anyone seen or know about this really cool species called the rubber ducky Isopod from the jungles of Thailand, and is this species currently captive bred? I can imagine the rip off prices for this potential huge seller.
A.K.A KDOG there are several reasons: they can clean up after other pets (such as frogs, hermit crabs, snakes, etc.), but some people just keep them because of all the varieties in color and pattern.
I just got some wild isopods. I have been giving them lots of dead leaves, wood and some carrot and potato. I was wondering if it would be a good idea to give them fish food flakes as well? 😊
Elaine Smith they should be fine if they are not contaminated with pesticides. I would use small pieces of dry, dead fronds and heat sanitize them at 200 F for half an hour as I do with leaf litter.
How important is cross ventilation? Is it an absolute must to have air coming in from the side? I live in Reno, NV in the high desert, so it's pretty dry in my house so I know I'll really have to keep isopods misted. I'm planning on getting some Porcellio Laevis “Dairy Cows” and Porcellio Laevis “Orange” and some springtails to put in my ball python's bioactive tank, but I also was thinking of getting extras and setting up colonies for the isopods too with some springtails in each. I have several empty 5 gallon aquariums with completely mesh lids that I'd like to use for the isopods if possible. They sit on a bookshelf with an inch of headroom above each before the next shelf, in a room with a ceiling fan and a couple other fans. Does that sound like they would work or should I just hold off on getting extra isopods for now? I don't really have the time or money at the moment to convert a bunch of totes.
Hey Rus I've been keeping armadillia isopods since childhood, but last year I found my isopods feeding on dead soft bodied insects have you ever run into this before?
nice video! i´m a beginner in housing isopods and my first group are 13 A.Klugii :) i got a plastic cntainer with ventilation etc. but i rehouse them a day later in a 30cm exo terra terrarium. i got enough substrate, dry leaves , moss and wood for food and hide. as its a small group for the big enclosure i dont see them very often (mostly on evening) and i dont know if there are making well or not... my question is: did i make a false decision to put them in the exoterra? (i´m from germany and my english isn´t the best :D but i hope its understandable)
Weinbergs_ Ratte Great question, and totally understandable. 👍 They will probably be just fine in the vivarium, but it may take a long time for the population to reach a density large enough for you to see them often. It should happen eventually though.
The Jeffrey 27 As long as they are fallen, decaying, nontoxic hardwood leaves. So that does leaves some out...but oak, maple, cottonwood, magnolia, elm, willow, and many others are fine.
I would like to see a video on how/where you keep your whole collection. Like do you keep the enclosures all together or spread around the house in case of a mite infestation etc. Are they exposed to any light or kept in a dark location? Stuff like that.
I’ve been breeding isopods for about a two years now and want to up productivity, do you still use your experimental substrate or would you recommend some other?
Samuel Tonnesson I still use the substrate I make with organic compost, alder /oak pellets, and hardwood leaves, plus powdered eggshell with great result Feeding at least twice a week with aupplwmwntal foods definitely increases productivity. 👍
Can isopods dig? I buried mine with a second layer of soil when building my bioactive vivarium. It's been over a week and still haven't seen any. I did leave in the carrot slices that came with the culture so maybe they are eating the carrot slices. I'm worried I killed them.
I'm just getting ready before my isopod arrives. I've had them before when i has a kid but back then there was no internet, so very little research was made on my part. So now i want to make sure i do everything right. I have lots of trees on my land, not mentioning evergreens, i have maples, bitch, apple trees, and others that i don't know the name in english and others that i have yet to identify. Why do i hear often to use hardwood trees? I ask because i found wild local isopods in an area where it was mostly soft trees with a little semi-hard trees.
Great video only thing i had a problem with is fish food. Not sure what brand of fish food you used but i got mites from omega one .But i really like feeding my isopods bug burger and arcadia custodian fuel.
Joshua Ramish Thank you! I. Generally use Omega One as well, thought I haven’t had mite issues, it may depend on the batch. Where is Arcadia Custodian Fuel available?
Great video, thanks for the info. In your opinion, which captive bred species would be the best for a very low ventilates, high humidity environment? Consistent humidity if 100%, ambient gradient ranging from 71-85° F, and a substrate that doesn't have a truly dry side?
You specified twice to use hardwood. Does this mean anything else is toxic or no good for them? I live in WA state and there is LOADS of yard detritus, leaves and branches I could use but don't want to make a toxic habitat for my isopods. I keep springtails in a char/sphagnum/leaf litter habitat and feed them rice and yeast flakes to supplement, but they just get the litter that's outside (cleaned of course). Also, I make snail-O for my aquarium critters (invertebrates) that contains spirulina, high calcium baby food (usually the kale, spinach & pear one), gelatin (to solidify) and calcium carbonate powder, could I also use this to feed the isopods occasionally? I have ordered 30+ powder orange isopods that will be here in 4 days and want to give them a happy healthy home! Thanks for the video, it was just what I was looking for!
*Beansie* good questions. Resinous woods aren’t particularly good for isopods, but I have found isopods Living among pine needles, for example. A few pine needles mixed I o the hardwood leaves won’t hurt, they just won’t do much to help. The actual sticky resin from the wood can trap isopods. Snail-O sounds like a perfectly good supplemental food for your powder oranges. 👍
M&J views bark is a great addition as well. I forgot to mention that in the video, but I use large pieces cork, maple, and oak bark for the isopods to congregate under. 😊👍
Aquarimax Pets right. When I collected part of a culture of isopods from my backyard I was in a rush, so I accidentally took some ants and other small insects with them in the dirt. Could tiny little ants and insects potentially harm my scorpion or tarantula? Another question:I just did a habitat rehab for my scorpion. I collected a lot of moss from my back yard and a tiny little pine tree. I planted the moss and tree in the terrerium last night and my scorpion is in the terrarium. I’m wondering if there could be any harmful bacteria in the moss or tree?
poopRooster WR Harmful bacteria are probably less of an issue than other creatures you could introduce...such as pesky mites, or ants. Some of these (not all species) could pose a threat to your pets if there are enough of them. Some people have great success and never have problems with wild-collected items, but it does happen.
poopRooster WR if you end up with a queen and a viable colony, that could be a big problem for a tarantula. Some ants could be problematic even if you don’t have a queen. You could isolate the isopods in a container on damp paper towels to help reduce the risk of introducing something unwanted.
When I was 7 years old, I had an intuitive feeling that I could put Roly Polies in water and they would live. So I did. They crawled around under the water like it was nothing. Only 30 years later did I learn they have gills. I don't know how long they can live under water though.
View This They can indeed survive underwater for some time, though the terrestrial species can’t survive there forever. There are some semiaquatic species that seem to be equally at home in water or on land. 👍
Aquarimax Pets Does it harm them to put them in water for a while to watch them?
They seem to be fine and sometimes traverse these small puts of water to get to rotten logs and stuff.
Water Bottle asked by a dude named Water Bottle lmao
@@Aquarimax There are also ones that live entirely in the ocean, and they can get _huge!_
Real isopod hours
気ぉざsorry 😊👍 they don’t get any realer than this!
True pill bug times
I *love* isopods!
They're not only adorable, but they're a great clean up crew for my tarantulas!
Lizz Wellne Indeed they are, I use them as a cleanup crew for various species too! 😊👍
man I always wanted a tarantula but I don't have the things to keep them... In the future I guess...
Honestly I couldn’t use isopods as live food, because they’re just so damn cute!
Justice J. Srisuk I completely understand! 😊👍
Yes
They look like freshly molted dubia nymphs
Lol I use them to feed my baby spiders and centipedes.
They're actually also SUPER useful for maintaining a bioactive terrarium, vivarium, or paludarium for your reptile or amphibian!
It’s amazing how much the substrate and preferences have changed over the years. I’m not sure if I already made this comment on a different video but I’m still doing it
True! The differences in husbandry between now and then show how adaptable isopods are!
I inadvertently left out a short scene in which I explained that supplementary calcium is a good idea for isopods. I have given them crushed oyster shell, cuttlebone, and powdered reptile calcium...(edit) as well as powdered eggshell. Check out the links in the description if you are interested in purchasing isopod foods and supplies.
Thanks for this video. I feel kind of over whelmed as I'm very new to this. Learned a lot about dart frogs and aquarium set up but now I'm learning about isopods and springtails which is just another thing I need to understand better and master. I'm getting there lol... So thanks again for these great tips.
Do you add powdered calcium to the substrate or to their food? I've wondered if they would eat it on it's own or not
I do both. Seems to be working out good. What's annoying is those dust mites and grain mites. They seem to be stealing my isopod and spring tail food. PUNKS! But it's not a big deal for me luckily. I just try to collect those lil punks and throw them in with the dart frogs since they will eat them too lol. They never seem to out compete my isopods and spring tales. Who knows how bad the future will be but so far after 2 months of keeping spring tales and isopods they have been reproducing well : )
Get cheap cuddlefish bone stuff from a pet store or online shopping. Also look into repashy calcium. They have a great mix that has vitamins in it too. Better deal than the competition I have found. It's the one with the yellow gecko on the cover art of the container.
Yeah Aquarimax! Thanks for the heart. I got 2 auratus dart frogs recently. The green and black camo kind. They are awesome. Goofy. Shy. But they are getting bigger and more silly lol. I got them from one of the Texas herp shows. Pretty sweet.
Something interesting happened with bean beetles for me. I recently got some at a herp show and decided to start a fresher colony of bean beetles. Bought the beans and put them in there. BUT... Before I put them in there I calcium dusted them. THEY ALL DIED IN THE NEW COLONY : (
So I tried again without the dusting this time and it seems to have worked a lot better. Perhaps dusting isn't a good idea with bean beetles in particular. Works just fine with isopods and fruit flies but maybe it's bad for the bean beetles.
And thanks again for your tips on fruit fly goo Aquarimax. I recently got into your vids on your recipe and added my own touch as well with the repashy bug powder activated with hot water for fruit flies. Works really well : )
imby i usually just sprinkle it in separately on the substrate. 👍
A Halo Reach guy who pooped on C4dburys_the_w0lf I am glad it has been helpful! 👍
Real iso🅱️od hours
b0atFan the realest! 😊👍
isopod isopod isopod isopod isopod isopod
isopod :D Isopods are awesome 😊👍
Aquarimax thanks
As a photographer, I know about ISO and tripods. It isn't quite the same, though 😁
These "modern trilobites" are fascinating.
Tommy Victor Buch 🤣👍 They are very like modern trilobites!!
I am really starting to develop an interest for these cute little bugs. I don't even know where to start, but this video helps. Thank you.
Felicia Foster You’re welcome! This video has more info: ruclips.net/video/HGKAbHNAKY4/видео.html
As will my website: www.aquarimax.com/isopod-care/
I finally decided to keep some , I have 5 now & I'm very happy with them.. cutest little guys ever
All of your isopod videos have been making me so happy. Such cute little guys ♥ I can't wait to care for some isopods of my own.
VocaPigeon I’m glad you are enjoying the videos! I hope you are able to get some soon!
I keep them as pets, my little brother is absolutely FASCINATED by them :>
I am binging your isopod content!! It’s great! Getting into the isopod hobby and it’s really exciting :)
I'm from Brazil and I'm not fluent in English, but I understood some information and enjoy so much the video! thanks for the content, isopods are cute :3
You’re very welcome!! 😊👍
Great clip, Rus. I was at the creek this past spring, catching up some freshly hatched crays and scuds for the aquarium and must have scooped a little substrate containing a young caecidotea within. A few weeks ago I happened to be looking in my tank when a full sized aquatic iso came crawling out of the mud at the bottom and into the plants. I guess conditions were right! Never knew he was there. I enjoy watching him when he occasionally comes out of cover.
Davis Talhone Great find! The first species of isopod I ever kept and bred, over 30 years ago, were caecidotea. I scooped a number of them out of an irrigation canal and put them in my 10-gallon aquarium...soon there were lots of them!
@@Aquarimax I regret that mine is the lone specimen in my tank.. Having them multiply would be great. When the spring weather comes for us in the northeast, I'll see if I can't wrangle him up some cohorts. Quite an elusive guy. He disappears for long periods at a time, almost convinced he's no longer with us only to reappear to feed before going back into the detritus once more.
Davis Talhone I do hope you are able to find a few more...if you can get a population going they’ll be milling around the tank all the time.
Im preparing to get some isopods this weekend, so this was very helpful! Thank you!
ZA Reptiles You are very welcome! Which species are you starting with?
Aquarimax Pets most likely blues and dwarf whites - I’ve been told they are good beginners. I’d love to get into diary cows and zebras though!
ZA Reptiles while powder blues and dwarf whites are certainly great for beginners, dairy cows are excellent beginner isopods as well! Zebras can be slightly more difficult, just because they require more ventilation. 👍
Aquarimax Pets thanks for the info!
This was AMAZING!!! Thank you so very much. It was comprehensive but easy to follow, and so well done!
Kimmaline I am so glad that you found it useful 😊👍
You deserve more subscribers; Amazing Channel!!!
NickTheFox23 :3 Thank you! That’s what I like to hear! 😊👍
They're so cute. I want some now.
KingFluffs They are so fun! 😊👍
I bet! I remember before when I set up bird houses for wild sparrows (they used my roof instead, like always. lol) lots of Woodlice ended up hiding behind them in the shade kinda like it was one of those bug hotels.
I've got a Jar full of them. I had an issue with fruit fly maggots getting into their food once, but it's fixed now. For their substrate, I just used soil from the ground, sticks, and whenever they need it, I throw in some Succulent leaves (Non poisonous succulent) and sometimes small pieces of potatoes.
Fascinating. I got turned on to isopods and hexapods through an NPR podcast. I will no longer shrink back when I see these in my garden or even at night at seaside when fishing. Amazing.
Tonessa West Crowe I am glad to know that you now share my fascinating for them! 😊👍
Do you remember the name of the podcast you were listening to? I’d love to listen to a podcast about isopods!
Believe it or not it started with a Radiolab/NPR podcast that I found fascinating. www.wnycstudios.org/story/from-tree-to-shining-tree/
Tonessa West Crowe Thank you! I can’t wait to listen to it as I love RadioLab radio productions. Much appreciated!
Tonessa West Crowe I want to listen as well! 😊👍
I remember making a small farm of isopods in a big jar with moist. I would take it to school at 4th grade in a black bag and hiding it under the table. I would usually put in a few more isopods afterschool in the gardens. It was a great experience studying these creatures in a small DIY terrain.
Smashy 2018 I remember doing similar jar setups when it was a kid. 👍
I am interested in isopods and this video was very helpful thank you!
4 Dub Glad to hear it! You are most welcome 👍
i just found some in my backyard. i have the curl up ones and some more flat ones.
The Orange/Brown isopods were cool, in going to reptile Expo soon and hope they sell some!
manachi koo koo I hope you find some there, good luck!
@@Aquarimax I've kept them before, found them in my garden and they've bred ALOT (Canada Quebec). but they were all sorts of different variations mixed Toghether, I don't know if that poses a problem? Maybe you can tell me. But I'd like to try again with one specific species for a long while!
manachi koo koo They can sometimes do well with several species together, but generally one eventually outcompetes the other, especially in smaller enclosures. 😊👍
have you seen the rubber ducky isopods??
Adrian I have! They are amazing!
Thank you for this, I was worried cause I got my first culture of iso to go in with my iguana.. but I wanted to build them up before putting the 20 I got in there.. I love you are very visual on what everything looks like.
Leslie Williams building up the culture is always a good idea...and then you’ve got a backup. I’m glad you appreciate the visuals...One video can be worth 10,000 words. 😊👍
Popsicle sticks and hotglue make great framing for your ventholes.
Michael Wescott great idea!
Great vid on the creatures. I never knew what they were called until now. I always had respect for them. I think I've seen three of the species you showed living here in the wild in Virginia.
Damian Bloodstone Thank you! Glad to know you share my interest in them. You may have more species in Virginia than I do here...it is fairly arid where I live, so I don’t see many wild isopods around, with the exception of Armadillidium vulgare, which tolerates a fair amount of aridity. 😊👍
Yeah, I also recognized some of these species from Virginia.
Wow...I had no idea people would cultivate them, this is new to me... I use to revolve the plants pots here at home and get some to feed my fishes, they love eating those... I'm starting to pity them and having a different view knowing now that they're keep as pets, right now considering cultivating them too haha...Thanks for the video!!
Caio Cesar I know what you mean... I started keeping them as live food/ clean up crew...they are still excellent as a cleanup crew, but now I see them as pets as well.. 😊👍
Hi! Nice vid! I'd love it if you could maybe make a vid where you tell us an exact weekly routine telling us info about how often to feed, if you don't have soil what else we could use and how often you spray them ect. Thanks for making great videos and I look forward to future videos!
Great video Rus! I’m setting up my first cultures in the coming days, so this was really helpful! Now to watch your video on springtails...
JTB Reptiles Glad to hear you are getting into Isopods and springtails! Not only do they completely transform bioactive vivaria, they are fascinating in their own right! 😊👍
Who else thinks these bug babies are adorable?? 😁🦗
GalaxyDonut I do! 😊👍
Me!
7:29 left terrarium plant moved😧
Ants Ph. One of my dart frogs was jumping around. 👍
This was extremely helpful! Thank you sooo much! I started experimenting with Bio-Active Vivarium & this video helped a lot!
Great to hear! Bioactive Vivariums are the way to go! 😊👍
@@Aquarimax they are soooo much fun! I've been in the aquarium hobby for years & never realized how much an aquarium ecosystem is related to the ecosystem of a Bio-Active setup. Binge warching your videos!
The BigSky Family Vlogs theynreally are quite similar. I love my aquariums, but I do find that bioactive vivariums are not only similar in many ways, but also easier in some respects. 👍
@@Aquarimax couldn't agree more! Thanks again for you informative videos!
I’ve kept A. vulgare for arthropod research and they did very well with very wet regular soil with dead leaves and some pieces of log and branches with no rocks/wood chips
Bogs Fogs they are pretty adaptable creatures. Wet soil can sometimes (not always) go acidic or anaerobic, causing problems for the isopods, but it sounds like it worked in your case.
Thanks, i learned a lot ! I might start keeping some :)
nozii06 Glad to hear it 😊👍
I love your videos you give great facts
Very useful information. Glad I stumbled across your video.
Hello, in the beginning of the video you talk about the size of the container and you let us know to use smaller sizes for beginning cultures. Do you have any video footage of transferring them safely into a larger container as they grow. I expect to build a few terrariums over the next year, and as I get to my last endeavor I hope to transfer that last of them to my final terrarium. I do not want to miss out on possible eggs or such.
Thank you for the advice! I have isopods!
Mia Bartolic _09 you’re welcome!
@@Aquarimax 😊
Thank you!
Anonimo You’re welcome, and thank you for watching!
That was awesome footage of them battling for the food toward the end of the video! I can't help but think they're super cute. I'm going to be checking out your website and seeing about ordering some supplies sometime, so thanks for all of the thorough information and links! I hope that your orange morph you guys were excited about continued to produce even more color morphed offspring!
Edit: I had added a question here, but I found the answer online right after that, lol. Now I know that no, springtails cannot launch themselves out of my tank. :')
Thank you! It turns out that orange individual was a stowaway...LOL!
You nailed the title dude, just purchased some ISO’s.
Hydroa Awesome! Which species?
Very informative.
Mike M_VB thank you!
i usually just put a rock in my backyard and topple it over a month later. boom there they are!
Daan van Dongen I have used that technique myself with great success!
Would love a video showing how to create a display isopod viv
Javi de la fuente great idea! 👍
This was fantastic
Jared Wehmeyer Why thank you! I am glad it has been helpful! 😊👍
thanks for sharing, it help us a lots
Malaysia - Nature Lover You are very welcome!!
Very informative video! Thanks a lot! 😁👍
BTDarters Channel You’re welcome! I am glad it was helpful!
Yeaaaasssss, thanks Rus!
Andrew Chen You’re welcome! 😊👍
Gotta save this video, this is isopod gold!
Mitch Mckenzie I am glad you have found it helpful! 👍🏽
Awesome Informative Video!
DragonUdo Thank you! Good luck with your isopods!
Came here looking for a meme, stayed watching and came away informed. Nice video.
That’s great, thanks for watching!
Excellent video thank you 👍
Thanks for the information 😊👍
Dinosaurs Terror World you are very welcome! 😊👍
I love roly-polies. I had em' as a child in fact. Cute little critters they are indeed =^.^=
Michael Mouse They are a lot of fun...and now so many more adults see the appeal than ever before!
They love sprouted plants could add some seeds to your compost.
Case G good idea! Sometimes zucchini or squash seeds sprout in the enclosures and they love those. I may try sprouting some birdseed for them. 😊👍
i was keeping my isopods wrong until this video.
God bless real isopod hours
a random guy whit a dino they are pretty adaptable, but I am glad it helped! 👍
Thank you so much for this! I very much want to get some 😁
Shimon you’re welcome! I hope you end up getting some 👍
thanks mate! this is very helpfull
BEASTKING You’re welcome! Happy to hear it!
Nice video.
Barbaryotaku thank you!
Thank you for this video! This will help a lot. :-D
Nice info
ezekiel m thank you!
Isopod’s are so interesting and beautiful
This really helped, thank you!
Kelly Drummond glad to hear it! 😊👍
@@Aquarimax I have some 'titans' coming this week, can't wait!
Congratulations! They are a great species, I am sure you will enjoy them!
thx!! great content good help :)
johny boy you’re welcome! 😊👍
Nice videos! I caught 3 types of spiny isopods here in the Philippines(specifically in Luzon area) last week. They don't seem to like the fruits I gave em. Are they more sensitive maybe than of those isopods that you have? I'm planning to breed em btw.
Philippe Cantoria I hope you are able to get them breeding! They may have specific needs that differ from other isopods, but nearly all species are detritivores. I would love to see pics or video of them! Do they have plenty of leaf litter? You can try giving them some fish food...many isopods like it. 👍
@@Aquarimax thanks.
Has anyone seen or know about this really cool species called the rubber ducky Isopod from the jungles of Thailand, and is this species currently captive bred? I can imagine the rip off prices for this potential huge seller.
I got some! ruclips.net/video/49EPgLiolak/видео.html
They love dead flies, bees or wasps. Mine go almost immediately after them, it's their absolute favourite.
Mine love pest moths, post swat.
Nice was thinking of getting a few today
I hope you do...they are so fun! 👍
Why or what's the purpose too breed and keep isopods?
A.K.A KDOG there are several reasons: they can clean up after other pets (such as frogs, hermit crabs, snakes, etc.), but some people just keep them because of all the varieties in color and pattern.
So they beneficial what's the best purpose they can do I'm an organic gardener could raising them help with soil
They clean up after animals (food, waste, shed skin) and they also turn dead plant material into compost, much like earthworms do.
This is awesome, thank you!!
I just got some wild isopods. I have been giving them lots of dead leaves, wood and some carrot and potato. I was wondering if it would be a good idea to give them fish food flakes as well? 😊
Anne K. G. Farcuh most isopods really like fish flakes, and the protein and chitin (in shrimp meal) are good for them 👍
@@Aquarimax Awesome, thanks! 😁
Awesome Video.
You should sometimes upload skits of your Isopods, lol
SlapStyle Anims 🤣👍 Maybe I should!
awesome video.
Can you use Palm fronds in the isopods container?
If you can; how do you sanitize the fronds?
Elaine Smith they should be fine if they are not contaminated with pesticides. I would use small pieces of dry, dead fronds and heat sanitize them at 200 F for half an hour as I do with leaf litter.
Aquarimax
Thank you.
I boiled them and then I'll bake them.
Elaine Smith 👍
Omg thx for putting my comment in the vid this help so Mitch thx ❤️
Dident see this till now 😍
Happy to help! Thanks for the question! 😊👍
How important is cross ventilation? Is it an absolute must to have air coming in from the side?
I live in Reno, NV in the high desert, so it's pretty dry in my house so I know I'll really have to keep isopods misted. I'm planning on getting some Porcellio Laevis “Dairy Cows”
and Porcellio Laevis “Orange” and some springtails to put in my ball python's bioactive tank, but I also was thinking of getting extras and setting up colonies for the isopods too with some springtails in each.
I have several empty 5 gallon aquariums with completely mesh lids that I'd like to use for the isopods if possible. They sit on a bookshelf with an inch of headroom above each before the next shelf, in a room with a ceiling fan and a couple other fans. Does that sound like they would work or should I just hold off on getting extra isopods for now? I don't really have the time or money at the moment to convert a bunch of totes.
What is the species of isopod at 8:32?
Oniscus asellus. 👍
Awesome🤩👍
Dinosaurs Terroir World Thank you! 😊👍
Aquarimax I’m thinking on getting a green frog
Dinosaurs Terroir World i used to keep those, they are fun! Voracious eaters...
Aquarimax I saw one available and I just had to buy it
Aquarimax what do they eat?
Hey Rus I've been keeping armadillia isopods since childhood, but last year I found my isopods feeding on dead soft bodied insects have you ever run into this before?
Zack Eatherton Yes, as detritivores, they will devour dead insects quite ravenously. 👍
nice video! i´m a beginner in housing isopods and my first group are 13 A.Klugii :) i got a plastic cntainer with ventilation etc. but i rehouse them a day later in a 30cm exo terra terrarium. i got enough substrate, dry leaves , moss and wood for food and hide. as its a small group for the big enclosure i dont see them very often (mostly on evening) and i dont know if there are making well or not... my question is: did i make a false decision to put them in the exoterra? (i´m from germany and my english isn´t the best :D but i hope its understandable)
Weinbergs_ Ratte Great question, and totally understandable. 👍 They will probably be just fine in the vivarium, but it may take a long time for the population to reach a density large enough for you to see them often. It should happen eventually though.
Can it be any kind of leaves?
The Jeffrey 27 As long as they are fallen, decaying, nontoxic hardwood leaves. So that does leaves some out...but oak, maple, cottonwood, magnolia, elm, willow, and many others are fine.
I would like to see a video on how/where you keep your whole collection. Like do you keep the enclosures all together or spread around the house in case of a mite infestation etc. Are they exposed to any light or kept in a dark location? Stuff like that.
Melissa Jones Great suggestion! I will plan on that 😊👍
I’ve been breeding isopods for about a two years now and want to up productivity, do you still use your experimental substrate or would you recommend some other?
Samuel Tonnesson I still use the substrate I make with organic compost, alder /oak pellets, and hardwood leaves, plus powdered eggshell with great result Feeding at least twice a week with aupplwmwntal foods definitely increases productivity. 👍
Good stuff👍 but can u make a video about morph isolation in isopods. Im trying to prepare myself for any oddballs in my culture.
sweetgurl crystal great suggestion! I will add that to my list. 😊👍
Aquarimax 😀
Can isopods dig? I buried mine with a second layer of soil when building my bioactive vivarium. It's been over a week and still haven't seen any. I did leave in the carrot slices that came with the culture so maybe they are eating the carrot slices. I'm worried I killed them.
Mambaconda most will dig around in the substrate. Most likely, they are just fine.
Awesome, ty :)
I was thinking of trying to keep some that are native to where I live (catch some) so I can feed them to my quail.
Your quail would probably like them!
07:28 plant on the left side of the left terrarium go BRRRR *excuse me i hate myself for doing that xD*
LOL! Mysterious bouncy fern!
I'm just getting ready before my isopod arrives. I've had them before when i has a kid but back then there was no internet, so very little research was made on my part. So now i want to make sure i do everything right. I have lots of trees on my land, not mentioning evergreens, i have maples, bitch, apple trees, and others that i don't know the name in english and others that i have yet to identify. Why do i hear often to use hardwood trees? I ask because i found wild local isopods in an area where it was mostly soft trees with a little semi-hard trees.
Great video only thing i had a problem with is fish food. Not sure what brand of fish food you used but i got mites from omega one .But i really like feeding my isopods bug burger and arcadia custodian fuel.
Joshua Ramish Thank you! I. Generally use Omega One as well, thought I haven’t had mite issues, it may depend on the batch. Where is Arcadia Custodian Fuel available?
Nice shirt man! 😀 Where can I get one?
Great video, thanks for the info. In your opinion, which captive bred species would be the best for a very low ventilates, high humidity environment? Consistent humidity if 100%, ambient gradient ranging from 71-85° F, and a substrate that doesn't have a truly dry side?
Coral Gene dwarf whites would be a great match for a setup of that sort. 👍
You specified twice to use hardwood. Does this mean anything else is toxic or no good for them? I live in WA state and there is LOADS of yard detritus, leaves and branches I could use but don't want to make a toxic habitat for my isopods. I keep springtails in a char/sphagnum/leaf litter habitat and feed them rice and yeast flakes to supplement, but they just get the litter that's outside (cleaned of course).
Also, I make snail-O for my aquarium critters (invertebrates) that contains spirulina, high calcium baby food (usually the kale, spinach & pear one), gelatin (to solidify) and calcium carbonate powder, could I also use this to feed the isopods occasionally? I have ordered 30+ powder orange isopods that will be here in 4 days and want to give them a happy healthy home!
Thanks for the video, it was just what I was looking for!
*Beansie* good questions. Resinous woods aren’t particularly good for isopods, but I have found isopods
Living among pine needles, for example. A few pine needles mixed I o the hardwood leaves won’t hurt, they just won’t do much to help. The actual sticky resin from the wood can trap isopods.
Snail-O sounds like a perfectly good supplemental food for your powder oranges. 👍
@@Aquarimax So then it's mainly a sticky thing rather than an acidic thing? Thanks for the reply!!👍
*Beansie* I think so, as oak leaves contain quite a bit of tannic acid, but it doesn’t harm the isopods at all. 😊👍
What's the opinion on bamboo leave?
Branfaol1 I haven’t used them myself, but I see no reason why they couldn’t make up part of the leaf litter in the substrate.
@@Aquarimax thank you
What about bark?
M&J views bark is a great addition as well. I forgot to mention that in the video, but I use large pieces cork, maple, and oak bark for the isopods to congregate under. 😊👍
@@Aquarimax ok great! Thank you for responding 😄
CAn I use wild caught isopods for my tarantula and scorpion?
poopRooster WR yes, but you run a greater risk of adding other creatures along with them accidentally.
Aquarimax Pets right. When I collected part of a culture of isopods from my backyard I was in a rush, so I accidentally took some ants and other small insects with them in the dirt. Could tiny little ants and insects potentially harm my scorpion or tarantula? Another question:I just did a habitat rehab for my scorpion. I collected a lot of moss from my back yard and a tiny little pine tree. I planted the moss and tree in the terrerium last night and my scorpion is in the terrarium. I’m wondering if there could be any harmful bacteria in the moss or tree?
poopRooster WR Harmful bacteria are probably less of an issue than other creatures you could introduce...such as pesky mites, or ants. Some of these (not all species) could pose a threat to your pets if there are enough of them. Some people have great success and never have problems with wild-collected items, but it does happen.
@@Aquarimax I didn't collect very many ants, probably around 15 to 20 but I'm not to sure. So do think it would be best to just buy some isopods?
poopRooster WR if you end up with a queen and a viable colony, that could be a big problem for a tarantula. Some ants could be problematic even if you don’t have a queen. You could isolate the isopods in a container on damp paper towels to help reduce the risk of introducing something unwanted.