{"title":"Beginner Isopods For Sale","description":"\u003ch1\u003eBeginner Isopods for Sale\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery isopod on this page is one I would hand to someone who has never kept invertebrates before. They tolerate a wide range of conditions, they breed without being coaxed, and none of them need heating, spraying twice a day or a species-specific substrate recipe to do well. Prices start at a couple of pounds, so a first colony is a small commitment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIf you want the short answer: start with \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cows\u003c\/a\u003e or \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dwarf-white-isopods\"\u003edwarf whites\u003c\/a\u003e. Both breed quickly enough that you will see results in weeks rather than months, and quick results are what keep a new keeper interested.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWhat makes an isopod beginner-friendly\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThree things, and only three.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA wide tolerance for error.\u003c\/strong\u003e Some species collapse if the substrate dries out for a weekend. The species here do not. \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e in particular will forgive a missed misting, a warm spell, or a tub that got left in a draught.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThey breed readily.\u003c\/strong\u003e A colony that reproduces faster than it loses animals is self-correcting. It absorbs your early mistakes. Slow breeders punish them instead, which is why an expensive rare species is the worst possible first purchase, however tempting the photographs are.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRoom temperature is enough.\u003c\/strong\u003e Nothing on this page needs a heat mat in a normally heated UK home. That removes the most common cause of a failed first colony, which is drying the air out with heating and not adding moisture back.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWhat to buy alongside them\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA first setup is genuinely cheap. You need a ventilated tub, a few centimetres of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/substrate-for-invertebrates\"\u003esubstrate\u003c\/a\u003e, a handful of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/leaf-litter-1l\"\u003eleaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e, a piece of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/small-cork-bark\"\u003ecork bark\u003c\/a\u003e to hide under, and a permanent calcium source such as \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/cuttlebone-100g\"\u003ecuttlebone\u003c\/a\u003e. That is the whole list.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAdding \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtails\u003c\/a\u003e to the same tub is worth doing from day one. They outcompete most moulds and cost very little, and a springtail culture is the single best insurance policy against the mould that worries most new keepers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe mistake almost everyone makes\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFussing. New keepers open the tub, move things about, check on the animals and mist whenever they walk past. Isopods breed and feed best when they are left alone, and a colony that is disturbed daily will stall no matter how good the setup is.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSet the conditions well, then have the patience to do nothing. Our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/the-beginner-s-guide-to-keeping-isopods-in-the-uk\"\u003ebeginner's guide to keeping isopods in the UK\u003c\/a\u003e covers the full setup, and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-substrate\"\u003ethe substrate guide\u003c\/a\u003e explains what actually goes in the tub and why.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWhich one should you actually pick\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor a first colony that shows results fast:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow\u003c\/a\u003e or \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/giant-orange-isopods\"\u003eGiant Orange\u003c\/a\u003e. Both are \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e, both are prolific, and both are under four pounds.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor a bioactive vivarium cleanup crew:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dwarf-white-isopods\"\u003edwarf whites\u003c\/a\u003e. Tiny, tolerant, invisible to the animal living above them, and they multiply with almost no input.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor something that looks striking on a shelf:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/magic-potion-isopods\"\u003eMagic Potion\u003c\/a\u003e or \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/panda-king\"\u003ePanda King\u003c\/a\u003e. Both are easy despite their appearance, and the Panda King is the Cubaris I most often hand to someone taking their first step into the genus.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery colony here is bred in the UK, ships with at least twenty per cent more animals than you ordered, and is covered by a live arrival guarantee. If you are not sure which to start with, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/pages\/contact\"\u003eask me\u003c\/a\u003e before you order.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"dairy-cow-isopods","title":"Dairy Cow Isopods for Sale UK (Porcellio laevis)","description":"\u003cp\u003eIf you want an isopod that actually works for a living, this is the one. Dairy Cows are big, fast, permanently hungry \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e, marked in bold black-and-white patches that genuinely do look like a Friesian herd viewed from a great height. They break down waste faster than almost anything else in the hobby, they breed prolifically, and they are about as forgiving as isopods get. There is one thing you need to know before they go anywhere near another animal, and I have put it below rather than burying it at the bottom.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAbout the Dairy Cow isopod\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDairy Cow, sometimes written Dairy Cow Isopod or simply Cow, is a black-and-white morph of \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e, a species native to southern Europe, the Mediterranean basin and North Africa that has since spread across much of the world alongside human activity. The species name \u003cem\u003elaevis\u003c\/em\u003e means smooth, which describes the shell nicely: no bumps or ridges, just a clean glossy surface, quite unlike the pebbled texture of a \u003cem\u003escaber\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThey are among the larger isopods you can keep, with adults reaching roughly 2cm and good specimens a little over. They are also quick. \u003cem\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/em\u003e do not conglobate, so when something startles them they do not roll into a ball; they flatten and sprint, which is why the species has been known as the swift woodlouse for a lot longer than it has been called a Dairy Cow.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe protein requirement, and why it matters\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e has an unusually high protein demand compared with most isopods, and this is the detail that gets left out of a lot of listings. A well-fed colony is no trouble at all. An underfed one will start looking for protein wherever it can find it, which can mean soft-bodied tankmates, or in a vivarium the skin of a sleeping reptile.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe fix is simple and cheap: keep a protein source permanently available rather than offering it occasionally. Dried \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dried-silkworm-pupae-100g\"\u003esilkworm pupae\u003c\/a\u003e, fish flake or a dried invertebrate food all work. If you are adding these to an enclosure with other animals in it, treat protein as part of the setup rather than an extra. Do that and they are excellent, hard-working vivarium residents. Skip it and they will make their own arrangements.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCare and housing\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGenuinely undemanding, which is why they are one of the best first isopods. A clip-lock tub with good cross-ventilation suits them, and bigger is better given how large they get and how quickly they multiply. Give them plenty of surface cover: cork bark, bark chips, and a thick layer of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/leaf-litter-1l\"\u003eleaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e they can work through.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSubstrate should be a nutritious base of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e, well-rotted hardwood and untreated organic topsoil, deep enough for the females to dig their brooding hollows. Coco coir is not the right base for them; it holds water but feeds nothing that eats the substrate itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn moisture, this is a species people commonly get wrong by overdoing it. They want moderate humidity with a clear gradient, not a uniformly wet tub. Keep one end damp and let the other run dry and airy, and they will use both. They like warmth and will breed faster for it, and a heated UK home suits them without any extra equipment for most of the year. Calcium should be constantly available, either as cuttlebone or crushed limestone, because animals this size put a lot into every moult.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eDiet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLeaf litter and rotting wood underpin everything and should never run out. On top of that they take vegetables enthusiastically, particularly courgette, carrot, squash and sweet potato, and they will clear a slice faster than you expect. Protein sits alongside all of this permanently rather than as a treat, for the reasons above.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the fastest-breeding isopods in the hobby and it needs almost no help from you. Females carry their brood in a pouch beneath the body and release live young; in warm conditions with food constantly available, a starter group turns into a working colony within months. If anything the usual problem is the opposite one, and keepers end up with more than they planned for. That is part of why they are so widely used as a feeder species: a mature colony produces a surplus you can harvest indefinitely without denting it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWho is this isopod for?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBeginners, bioactive keepers and anyone who wants an isopod that visibly does something. They are hardy enough to survive the mistakes everyone makes early on, striking enough to be worth watching in their own right, and productive enough to feed other animals from. The one group I would steer away is anyone housing them with small, soft-bodied or delicate tankmates, where the protein issue makes them a poor neighbour.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you like the animal but want a different look, the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/giant-orange-isopods\"\u003eGiant Orange\u003c\/a\u003e is the same species in a bold orange, with identical care, and the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/porcellio-laevis-milk-back-isopods\"\u003eMilk Back\u003c\/a\u003e is another \u003cem\u003elaevis\u003c\/em\u003e line worth a look. Do not confuse Dairy Cows with the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/oreo-crumble-isopods\"\u003eOreo Crumble\u003c\/a\u003e, which wears a similar black-and-white pattern but is a \u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e morph, noticeably smaller and faster. The full range is in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ePorcellio collection\u003c\/a\u003e, and there is more husbandry detail in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/care-for-dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow isopod care guide\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese come from our own captive-bred colonies, and we count 20% over your order into every tub as standard. They travel in a ventilated deli pot with damp sphagnum inside a double-walled box, sent Monday to Thursday only on Royal Mail's tracked next-day service, and backed by our live arrival guarantee.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45085284860198,"sku":"DC10","price":2.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":45085284892966,"sku":"DC50","price":10.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":45085292265766,"sku":"DC100","price":17.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"200","offer_id":47333748605222,"sku":"","price":32.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/dairy-cow-isopods-porcellio-laevis-for-sale-uk-9411121.jpg?v=1779468259"},{"product_id":"panda-king","title":"Panda King Isopods (Cubaris sp.)","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn five years of keeping isopods - and more than two decades keeping reptiles and other exotics before that - the Panda King is the Cubaris I most often hand to someone taking their first step into the genus. The name does it justice: bold black-and-white banding that genuinely evokes a giant panda, on an isopod you can recognise across a room. But what really sets it apart from the rest of the Cubaris world is that it actually breeds - reliably, and in good numbers - where so many premium cave species stall. Every Panda King we send is captive-bred here in the UK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Panda King is \u003cem\u003eCubaris\u003c\/em\u003e sp. \"Panda King\", one of the most recognisable and popular Cubaris in the hobby. It comes from the limestone caves and karst formations of central and northern Vietnam - dark, humid, calcium-rich environments that shape everything about how you keep it. It has become the gateway species into Cubaris for good reason: the striking looks and the reasonable care of the rarer cave species, without their steep cost or demanding husbandry. It also comes in some superb morphs, from the fiery \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/red-panda-king-isopods\"\u003eRed Panda King\u003c\/a\u003e to the soft \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/pink-panda-king\"\u003ePink Panda King\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePanda Kings reach around 1-1.5 cm, with a rounded, calm body carrying the two solid white bands and black patterning that give them their name. The contrast against dark substrate and leaf litter is unmistakable, and they are one of the few isopods you can identify on sight from across a room. Like all Cubaris they conglobate, rolling into a tight ball when disturbed - the classic pillbug defence - and they are unhurried, deliberate animals that spend much of their time burrowing through the substrate and grazing beneath cover.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCare\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHere is where Panda King care differs most from the hardy European isopods, and it is worth getting right. As a cave species they want warmth and high humidity - around 21-27°C and 70-80% - but crucially they prefer \u003cstrong\u003elow ventilation\u003c\/strong\u003e, not the strong cross-airflow Mediterranean species need. Their natural habitat is still, humid cave air, so a plastic tub with a clip-lock lid and only a few small vents holds humidity far better than a breezy glass terrarium. Give them a deep substrate to burrow into, built around a nutritious base of flake soil, white-rotted hardwood and organic topsoil rather than coco coir, which holds moisture but offers no nutrition to an animal that eats its substrate. And because they come from calcium-rich limestone caves, a permanent calcium source is not optional: cuttlebone or crushed limestone directly affects their moulting, breeding and overall health. Our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-substrate\"\u003esubstrate guide\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-calcium-guide\"\u003ecalcium guide\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/complete-cubaris-isopod-care-guide\"\u003ecomplete Cubaris care guide\u003c\/a\u003e cover the detail.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eDiet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePanda Kings are detritivores, so the foundation of the diet is leaf litter and decaying wood, kept topped up as it is eaten. Add small amounts of vegetables and the occasional protein such as fish flake or dried shrimp, and clear away anything uneaten within a day or two - overfeeding fresh food is the quickest route to mould and pests in a humid, low-ventilation enclosure. A thriving \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail\u003c\/a\u003e culture alongside them handles microbial cleanup before it becomes a problem, and is well worth adding to any Cubaris setup.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the Panda King's real party trick. Many premium Cubaris are notoriously slow or difficult to breed, with colonies that stagnate for months despite perfect husbandry - Panda Kings simply get on with it. Give a starter group of 10-20 stable, warm, humid conditions and you will typically see the first mancae within three to six months, and a thriving colony inside a year. That reliability makes them far better value than the slow-breeders at similar prices. Our guide to \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/breeding-rubber-duckys-and-panda-kings\"\u003ebreeding Rubber Duckys and Panda Kings\u003c\/a\u003e walks through it. As with any cave Cubaris, patience early pays off, so let a new group settle without digging around after them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Panda King suits almost anyone drawn to Cubaris - a keeper wanting their first cave species without the cost and difficulty of the rare ones, or an experienced hobbyist after a dependable, good-looking, productive colony. It is a step up in care from the hardy beginner isopods, mainly in its need for warmth, humidity and low ventilation, but it is one of the most forgiving and rewarding Cubaris you can keep. Explore the rest of the genus in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/cubaris-isopods\"\u003eCubaris collection\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery colony is captive-bred from established UK stock and ships under our live arrival guarantee, sent in a double-walled box with sphagnum moss in a ventilated deli tub. We dispatch Monday to Thursday so nothing sits in the postal system over a weekend.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45085293412646,"sku":"PK10","price":10.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":45085293445414,"sku":"PK20","price":17.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":45085298852134,"sku":"PK50","price":40.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":47111597556006,"sku":"","price":75.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/panda_king_isopod-183352.jpg?v=1723670769"},{"product_id":"magic-potion-isopods","title":"Magic Potion Isopods (Armadillidium vulgare)","description":"\u003cp\u003eFew isopods pull off the trick the Magic Potion manages: it looks like a designer morph and behaves like a garden weed. The pale, almost milky body is scattered with soft yellow patches and crisp black flecks, and no two animals wear quite the same pattern, so build a colony and you end up with a tub of individuals rather than a set of clones. Underneath that showy coat, though, is \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium vulgare\u003c\/em\u003e, the common pill bug most of us met as children, which is exactly why this is one of the most forgiving good-looking isopods you can keep.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAbout the Magic Potion Isopod\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMagic Potion, also sold as the Magic Potion Vulgare, is a selectively bred colour form of \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium vulgare\u003c\/em\u003e, the roly-poly or pill woodlouse that is native right across Europe including here in the UK. It is a true pill bug, so when it feels threatened it rolls into a tight, sealed ball with no gaps, a habit that never really stops being satisfying to watch. Because the base animal is so widespread and hardy, the morph carries all of that resilience with it, which is unusual for something this eye-catching.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe look comes from a dalmatian-type trait that breaks up the dark pigment into scattered speckles while leaving the species' natural yellow markings intact, giving you that milky-white background dusted with yellow and black. The trait behaves as a recessive one and breeds true when Magic Potions are kept together, so a settled colony stays on-morph. You may see it offered as an American line or a Japanese line; in practice both give you the same animal, with only minor differences in size and how quickly they build up. Freshly arrived juveniles often look a little washed out, and the bold adult contrast fills in over a couple of months of good feeding, so try not to judge a young colony too early.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCare and Housing\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMagic Potions are genuinely beginner-friendly, and one of the few isopods I am happy to hand to someone just starting out. A 6 to 10 litre tub with a clip-lock lid suits a starter group, with plenty of cross-ventilation drilled into the sides. Unlike the tropical cave species, these tolerate drier, airier conditions well, and that ventilation heads off most mould problems before they begin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor substrate I use a nutritious base of flake soil, well-rotted hardwood and organic topsoil, at least 5cm deep so they can burrow. I would steer you away from a coco-coir base here: it holds moisture but gives a substrate-eater nothing to actually eat. Top it with a generous layer of leaf litter, with \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/large-magnolia-leaves-for-isopods\"\u003emagnolia leaves\u003c\/a\u003e and oak both ideal, and add a few pieces of cork bark for cover. A layer of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e mixed through the base keeps it living and productive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe one rule that applies to any \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/armadillidium-isopods\"\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/a\u003e is a moisture gradient rather than uniform damp. Keep one end lightly moist with a patch of sphagnum and damp leaf litter, and let the other end run drier; the colony will move between the two as it needs to. Normal heated UK room temperature suits them the year round, and a piece of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/cuttlebone-100g\"\u003ecuttlebone\u003c\/a\u003e left in for constant calcium keeps moulting healthy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eDiet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe staple is leaf litter and rotting wood, always available, and they are not remotely fussy beyond that. Offer soft vegetables such as courgette, cucumber, squash and sweet potato, and lift out anything uneaten within a day. Once or twice a week give a little protein, such as \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dried-daphnia-100g\"\u003edried daphnia\u003c\/a\u003e, which supports moulting and keeps a breeding colony productive. Do bear in mind that, like most Armadillidium, they will graze on soft live plants and moss in a bioactive setup, so plant with the tougher species if you want the greenery to survive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the easiest premium-looking morphs to breed, which is a large part of why it stays affordable and widely available. Females carry their developing young in a brood pouch on the underside and release live, miniature isopods once they hatch. A starter group kept warm, fed well and given steady calcium will usually show tiny mancae within a month or two, and inside a year you will have a thriving colony. Keep the colony morph-to-morph and the offspring come out as Magic Potions; cross them back to a plain wild-type vulgare and the morph goes hidden for a generation, which is worth knowing if you want to hold a pure line.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWho Is This Isopod For?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you want serious visual impact without the demanding husbandry that usually comes with it, this is the isopod I point people towards first. It makes an ideal first step up from plain beginner species, a reliable bioactive clean-up crew, and a rewarding display colony in its own right; pair it with a \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e to keep mould in check and you have a low-effort, self-sustaining setup. If you are weighing up other hardy, good-looking options, the striped \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/zebra-isopods\"\u003eZebra isopod\u003c\/a\u003e sits in much the same easy-care bracket. For a fuller walk-through of housing and husbandry, our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/care-for-magic-potion-isopods\"\u003eMagic Potion care guide\u003c\/a\u003e goes into more detail.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery order is captive-bred here in the UK and travels in a double-walled box, tucked into a ventilated tub with damp sphagnum moss to keep everyone comfortable in transit. We post Monday to Thursday by Royal Mail Tracked, with a live arrival guarantee on every parcel.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45085316940070,"sku":"MP10","price":15.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":45085316972838,"sku":"MP20","price":27.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":55721440117118,"sku":"MP10","price":60.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/magic_potion_isopod-249604.jpg?v=1723670768"},{"product_id":"white-shark","title":"White Shark Isopods (Cubaris sp.)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe name oversells the menace. The White Shark is a dwarf Cubaris barely 8 mm long, one of the smallest in the UK hobby, and about as fierce as a grain of rice. What earns the name is the markings: a bright orange front, a pale midsection and a dark blue-black rear, arranged so that a curled animal reads like the silhouette of a shark mid-turn. It is a lot of colour on a very small package, and unusually for a Cubaris it breeds like it means it. Every colony we send is captive-bred here in the UK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is \u003cem\u003eCubaris\u003c\/em\u003e sp. 'White Shark', a true dwarf from the lime-rich tropical habitats of Thailand, also sold as the White Shark Dwarf Isopod. It sits at the forgiving end of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/cubaris-isopods\"\u003ethe genus\u003c\/a\u003e: it shrugs off the sort of minor husbandry slips that would set back a premium species, and because it multiplies quickly a colony recovers from a wobble rather than stalling. That combination of tiny size, real colour and reliable breeding makes it one of the smartest first steps into Cubaris.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFully grown at around 8 mm, this is genuinely a look-closely animal, but the tricolour banding stands out clearly against dark substrate and there are simply more of them moving about than you get with a larger, pricier species. Curled up they look like miniature striped marbles. Colour deepens with age and good feeding, so newly arrived juveniles read paler than the settled adults.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eCare\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhite Sharks like it warm, 24 to 28°C, with the upper end favouring breeding, and a humidity gradient around 60 to 80% rather than a uniformly soaked tub. They are enthusiastic burrowers, so give them depth, 7 to 10 cm, built on flake soil, white-rotted hardwood and organic topsoil with crushed limestone worked all the way through. Skip coco coir and peat as the foundation: the first feeds nothing, and it is the limestone that matters here, mirroring the calcium-rich Thai soils and feeding clean moults. Keep one side damp and one drier, damp like a wrung-out cloth and never with standing water at the base, which is the quickest way to lose a dwarf colony. Our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-substrate\"\u003esubstrate guide\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-calcium-guide\"\u003ecalcium guide\u003c\/a\u003e have the specifics.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDiet\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLeaf litter and rotting white wood are the constant base. On top, offer vegetable once or twice a week, a slice of carrot is the classic way to draw the whole colony up where you can count them, plus regular protein, as these little ones are notably protein-hungry for their size. Keep a constant calcium source, and set fresh food on the drier side so it does not spoil in the warmth. A \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e keeps mould in check at a scale even a dwarf isopod cannot.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the White Shark's real selling point. Where many Cubaris breed slowly and unpredictably, an established colony of these grows fast: give a starter group a month to settle, then warmth, depth and constant calcium, and numbers climb steadily from there. Females carry their young in a brood pouch and the mancae rear happily alongside the adults, so be ready to split or upsize as the colony fills out.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe White Shark suits the keeper with a nano or planted tank where a larger species would overwhelm the space, and anyone after a self-sustaining cleanup crew or dart-frog feeder that keeps its own numbers up. It is a strong first Cubaris and a poor choice only if you want a big animal you can admire from across the room, or you cannot hold steady warmth and humidity. Compare it with the bolder \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/panda-king\"\u003ePanda King\u003c\/a\u003e or the larger \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/jupiters\"\u003eJupiter\u003c\/a\u003e if you want more size on show.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAll stock is captive-bred here in the UK and ships under our live arrival guarantee, in a ventilated deli tub with damp sphagnum inside a double-walled box, with mixed sizes for a balanced colony. We post Monday to Thursday by Royal Mail next day before 1pm, with a 20% overcount included. Setup components are in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/accessories\"\u003eaccessories range\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45151523930406,"sku":"WSH10","price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":45151523995942,"sku":"WSH50","price":52.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":45151537201446,"sku":"WSH20","price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/products\/whitesharkisopods-277168.jpg?v=1710323101"},{"product_id":"dwarf-white-isopods","title":"Dwarf White Isopods (Trichorhina tomentosa)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThere is no such thing as a male dwarf white. Every animal in the culture is female, every one of them produces young without ever meeting a mate, and the practical upshot is that you cannot get the sex ratio wrong, cannot buy a group of the wrong sex, and cannot fail to breed them for any reason other than neglect. It is the closest thing the hobby has to a self-running culture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese are \u003cem\u003eTrichorhina tomentosa\u003c\/em\u003e, sold as Dwarf White Isopods or Tropical White Isopods, and they are the workhorse of the bioactive world rather than a display animal. They come from tropical Central and South America, they are tiny at 2 to 4 mm, effectively blind, and they spend nearly all their time down in the substrate where you will scarcely see them. What they lack in presence they make up for in usefulness: almost every serious bioactive setup has a colony of these ticking away underneath it, and almost every dart frog keeper uses them as food.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSmall, pale and downy. The body is a plain white to off-white with a fine felted surface texture, which is where the species name comes from, \u003cem\u003etomentosa\u003c\/em\u003e meaning downy. Worth clearing up a persistent confusion at this point: dwarf whites are white, not blue. The Powder Blue isopod is a different species entirely, \u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e, and the two get mixed up constantly in listings and care sheets. If yours look blue-grey, you have Powder Blues.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCare\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWarm, damp and left alone. They want tropical conditions, which for most UK homes means a little gentle heat for part of the year, and a consistently moist substrate that never dries out, since drying is the one thing that reliably kills a culture. Ventilation still matters, so damp rather than waterlogged, with airflow enough to keep mould honest. They need very little space: a small tub with a few mesh-covered holes does the job, and the mesh needs to be fine, because at 2 mm these animals will find any gap. Underneath, give them a nutritious base of flake soil, white-rotted hardwood and organic topsoil topped with leaf litter, since they eat their substrate as it breaks down. Skip both coco coir and peat as the foundation, the first because it feeds nothing and the second because it is too acidic. Our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e and the botanicals in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/accessories\"\u003eaccessories range\u003c\/a\u003e cover the mix, and our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-substrate\"\u003esubstrate guide\u003c\/a\u003e has the full recipe. A little cuttlebone helps moulting, though as a small, lightly armoured species they are far less calcium-hungry than the big \u003cem\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eCubaris\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eDiet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLeaf litter and decaying hardwood do nearly all of it, and they will graze the harmless surface mould that appears on damp organic matter, which is a large part of why they clean so well. A pinch of fish flake or a scrap of vegetable now and then keeps a growing colony fed, removed after a day or two. That is the whole of it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEffortless, by design. Parthenogenesis means every individual is a breeding female that clones herself, so numbers climb steeply given nothing more than warmth, moisture and food. There is no pairing to arrange, no ratio to balance and no waiting for a colony to sex out. A healthy culture will outgrow its tub, which is exactly what you want from something you intend to crop from.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThree people, mainly. The dart frog, mourning gecko or small amphibian keeper who wants a live feeder that renews itself indefinitely and is the right size for froglets. The bioactive keeper who needs a micro cleanup crew for a small or heavily planted enclosure where a larger isopod would be clumsy, and who will get the best of it by running them alongside \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtails\u003c\/a\u003e, the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/orange-springtails\"\u003eorange\u003c\/a\u003e ones especially. And the complete beginner who wants a first culture that is genuinely hard to kill. The one keeper they will disappoint is anyone after something to look at, since you will rarely see them. If you want visible cleanup, the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow\u003c\/a\u003e does the same job in plain sight. Everything else is in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/isopods-for-sale\"\u003eisopod range\u003c\/a\u003e, and there is more detail in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/trichorhina-tomentosa-isopods\"\u003edwarf white care guide\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCultures go out captive-bred and well established, covered by our live arrival guarantee and packed with moss and substrate in a double-walled box. Posting runs Monday to Thursday on Royal Mail next day before 1pm.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"25","offer_id":56747811275134,"sku":"DW50","price":6.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":45151583338790,"sku":"DW50","price":9.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":45151583371558,"sku":"DW100","price":17.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/dwarf-white-isopods-trichorhina-tomentosa-1105081.jpg?v=1779299595"},{"product_id":"giant-orange-isopods","title":"Giant Orange Isopods (Porcellio laevis)","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn five years of keeping isopods - and more than two decades keeping reptiles and other exotics before that - the Giant Orange has stayed near the top of my list of species to put in front of a new keeper. It is the bold, bright counterpart to the ever-popular Dairy Cow: the very same species, \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e, with the same bulletproof genetics and prolific breeding, but in a single, uniform, vivid orange that stands out dramatically against any substrate. Every Giant Orange we send is captive-bred here in the UK, so you are starting with hardy, settled stock rather than wild-collected animals.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Giant Orange goes by a few names in the hobby - you will see it sold as the Giant Orange Isopod, Orange Laevis or simply \u003cem\u003eP. laevis\u003c\/em\u003e \"Orange\" - but they all describe the same animal, the orange colour morph of \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e. Laevis is one of the most established and reliable species in the entire hobby, and the Orange morph pairs that proven hardiness with genuinely eye-catching colour. What makes it such a smart choice is exactly that combination: designer-tier orange without the fuss or fragility of a delicate speciality morph, on a species that is famously hard to go wrong with. Its black-and-white sibling, the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow\u003c\/a\u003e, is the same animal in different clothes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese are big, bright and fast. Adults reach up to around 20 mm, which makes them one of the larger isopods you can keep and easily enjoyed with the naked eye. The body is smooth and a true, vibrant orange - not the muted rust or peach tones many \"orange\" isopods settle for - often with subtle white highlights along the edges, and the intensity varies from one animal to the next, some almost glowing while others run softer. One thing worth knowing: like all \u003cem\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/em\u003e, Giant Oranges cannot roll into a ball. Unlike the pill-type isopods they rely on speed and cover rather than conglobating, so expect a busy, surface-active colony rather than one that curls up when disturbed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCare\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e is prized for being adaptable, and the Giant Orange is no exception - it tolerates a wide range of conditions, which is a large part of why it suits beginners. Give it a roomy, well-ventilated enclosure with a deep substrate to burrow into. Build that substrate around a nutritious base of flake soil, white-rotted hardwood and organic topsoil rather than coco coir, which holds moisture but offers nothing for an animal that feeds on its substrate. As a laevis they like it humid but never stagnant, so set up a moisture gradient - a damper end and a drier, well-aired end - and let them choose. Normal UK room temperature suits them across most of the year. Everything you need to build a setup is in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/accessories\"\u003eaccessories range\u003c\/a\u003e, and a calcium source such as cuttlebone or crushed limestone should be available at all times for healthy moulting - our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-calcium-guide\"\u003ecalcium guide\u003c\/a\u003e covers the options.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eDiet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGiant Oranges are voracious detritivores, and the foundation of the diet is leaf litter and decaying wood, kept topped up as it is eaten. One thing sets laevis apart, though: they want more protein than the average isopod. Alongside the leaf litter and the occasional vegetable, offer regular protein - a little fish flake, dried shrimp or an insect-based food a couple of times a week - which keeps the colony productive and stops them nibbling at one another. Remove any uneaten fresh food promptly so it does not mould. Our guide to \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/what-do-isopods-eat\"\u003ewhat isopods eat\u003c\/a\u003e covers the full diet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is where the Giant Orange earns its keep as a workhorse. Like the Dairy Cow it breeds prolifically and fast: a modest starter group, kept warm and well fed with plenty of protein and calcium, builds into a productive colony in short order. Breeding is sexual, with females carrying their young in a brood pouch on the underside of the body before they emerge as tiny, fully-formed mancae that feed independently from the start. That productivity is exactly what makes them such a good feeder colony as well as a striking display one.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Giant Orange is one of the most versatile isopods going. Beginners get an easy, forgiving, affordable first species with results that look far fancier than they are. Reptile and amphibian keepers get a productive feeder colony that doubles as a visible clean-up crew. And experienced hobbyists get a reliable workhorse for bioactive setups where a premium morph would be overkill. About the only keeper it does not suit is someone specifically after a pill-type isopod that rolls into a ball. If you are new to the hobby, our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/the-beginner-s-guide-to-keeping-isopods-in-the-uk\"\u003ebeginner's guide to keeping isopods\u003c\/a\u003e covers the fundamentals; you will find more of the genus in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ePorcellio collection\u003c\/a\u003e, and if you are building a broader collection our best-selling \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/rubber-ducky-isopods\"\u003eRubber Ducky\u003c\/a\u003e is a natural step into the cave-type Cubaris.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery colony is captive-bred from established UK stock and ships under our live arrival guarantee, sent in a double-walled box with sphagnum moss in a ventilated deli tub. We dispatch Monday to Thursday so nothing sits in the postal system over a weekend.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45172258406694,"sku":"O10","price":3.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":45172258472230,"sku":"O20","price":6.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":47412476281126,"sku":"","price":13.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":45172258439462,"sku":"O100","price":21.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/giant-orange-isopods-porcellio-laevis-7842659.jpg?v=1779475998"},{"product_id":"snow-white","title":"Snow White Isopods (Porcellio laevis)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e story keeps adding chapters. It started for most people with the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow\u003c\/a\u003e, the black-and-cream workhorse, then came the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/giant-orange-isopods\"\u003eGiant Orange\u003c\/a\u003e, and the Snow White is the same tough species again with the pigment bred right out. What is left is a clean, near-pure white woodlouse that throws real contrast against dark substrate and leaf litter. Plenty of \"white\" isopods actually read grey or off-cream; a well-kept Snow White holds a clean, snow-like tone, which is exactly where the name comes from.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe appeal is the trade-off it does not ask you to make. You get a striking, almost designer-looking morph on a species that is close to bulletproof, breeds like it is going out of fashion and forgives the kind of husbandry slips that would sink something delicate. They are big for a common isopod, up to around 20 mm, fast, busy and often out in daylight, so they work as a display animal as much as a clean-up crew. For a first step into showy morphs without the demanding care that usually comes attached, this is one of the easiest recommendations I can make.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike all \u003cem\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/em\u003e, the Snow White cannot roll into a ball. Faced with trouble it backs into cover or simply outruns it, relying on speed rather than armour, and that restless, surface-active habit is part of what makes the colony fun to watch. It is a hungrier animal than the pill woodlice too, with a real appetite for protein, which shapes how you feed it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHousing is undemanding. A six to ten litre tub with a clip-lock lid and cross-ventilation on both sides suits a starter group. Keep a moisture gradient rather than a uniformly wet floor: roughly three-quarters of the tub lightly damp, a quarter left drier, with good airflow over the top. These are adaptable across normal room temperatures, about 18 to 26°C, so no heating is needed in most homes. Give them a living base of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e, rotted hardwood and organic topsoil at least five centimetres deep; I would avoid a plain coco-coir base, which holds water but offers nothing to eat as it sits there.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTop the substrate with a thick layer of leaf litter, cork bark for cover and a permanent calcium source such as cuttlebone or crushed eggshell, which matters doubly on a white animal because clean moults keep the colour crisp. On food, leaf litter and rotting wood are the always-available base, but the protein is where \u003cem\u003eP. laevis\u003c\/em\u003e parts company with the pill bugs: offer fish flake, dried shrimp or a dedicated isopod protein a couple of times a week, alongside soft veg like courgette, squash and sweet potato. Underfeed the protein and a fast, crowded colony can start nibbling its own softer, freshly moulted members, so keep it topped up.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBreeding needs almost no encouragement. Give a settled group warmth, food and steady calcium and the females will carry young in the brood pouch and drop live miniatures in quick succession; a starter colony can build into a full population inside a few months. If you want the numbers, this is among the fastest breeders in the hobby, which is a large part of why it stays such good value.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePair them with a \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e to keep mould down around the protein feedings, read up on the wider group in our guide to the \u003ca href=\"\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/different-types-of-porcellio-isopods\"\u003edifferent types of Porcellio\u003c\/a\u003e, or browse the full \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ePorcellio collection\u003c\/a\u003e to see where the Snow White sits. Every order is captive-bred from established UK colonies, sent in a double-walled box around a ventilated tub of damp sphagnum, posted Monday to Thursday by tracked next-day Royal Mail with a 20% overcount and a live-arrival guarantee.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45172957282598,"sku":"SW10","price":2.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":45172957348134,"sku":"SW20","price":4.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":55292510863742,"sku":null,"price":11.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":45172957315366,"sku":"SW100","price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/products\/2613_cd866a5b-3295-4837-961c-f58b8bbf2486-353240.jpg?v=1698793887"},{"product_id":"powder-white-isopods","title":"Powder White Isopods (Porcellionides pruinosus)","description":"\u003cp\u003eCatch a Powder White in the light and you'll see where this whole line of isopods gets its name. The shell carries a fine bloom, a pale dusting that sits on the surface like frost on cold glass. The scientific name says it plainly: \u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e, from the Latin for covered in hoarfrost. On most Powder isopods that bloom lies over a deeper base colour, but here it settles across a ghostly white-to-pale-grey animal, so the whole creature looks lightly dusted. The powder isn't only for show, either; that layer is water-repellent, which has been measured rather than assumed, and it is laid down fresh before each moult.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSometimes listed as White Out, the Powder White is the pale colour morph of the species most keepers simply call the Powder isopod. Juveniles tend to emerge close to solid white, then develop that soft, frosted sheen as they grow and moult. It's the same hardy animal behind the dusky \u003ca href=\"\/products\/powder-blue-isopods\"\u003ePowder Blue\u003c\/a\u003e and the warm \u003ca href=\"\/products\/powder-orange-isopods\"\u003ePowder Orange\u003c\/a\u003e, cooled right down to a chalky pale, and it holds lovely contrast against dark substrate and leaf litter.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese are not the slow, trundling isopods some people expect. \u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e stays small, reaching around 1.5 cm at most, and it is fast, restless and constantly busy. Unlike many isopods it's often out in the open by day rather than waiting for the lights to go off. It also doesn't conglobate, so it can't roll into a protective ball the way a pill woodlouse does. Instead it trusts its speed, which is worth remembering at feeding time, since a quick colony will slip through gaps a slower species would never find. A settled group scurrying across the surface is a good part of the charm.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCare is plain and forgiving, which is why I point complete beginners towards this species as readily as old hands. The one real request is good ventilation paired with a moderate moisture gradient, not a wet box. I keep one corner damp with sphagnum and let the rest dry out, so the colony can choose its own comfort. Room temperature suits them all year in most UK homes, with no heat mat needed. A base of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e topped with \u003ca href=\"\/products\/large-magnolia-leaves-for-isopods\"\u003emagnolia leaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e gives them cover, humidity and a steady food source in one go, and a little cuttlebone or crushed eggshell keeps their moults clean.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFeeding is much the same story. They graze constantly on decaying leaves and rotting wood, take vegetable scraps happily, and do noticeably better for a little protein now and then, a pinch of fish flake or dried shrimp every week or so. That appetite is what makes them such a superb bioactive clean-up crew, working through waste, mould and leftover food quickly. They also breed fast, with sub-adults often pairing up before they reach full size, so a small starter culture will build into a self-sustaining population with almost no help from you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you want a white clean-up crew that stays out of sight, the tiny \u003ca href=\"\/products\/dwarf-white-isopods\"\u003eDwarf White\u003c\/a\u003e is the usual pick, but the Powder White is a different proposition, larger, visible and well worth watching. Plenty of keepers run both, or collect all three Powder morphs together for a colony that drifts between pale, blue and orange as it grows.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery order is captive-bred, boxed double-walled around a ventilated tub of damp sphagnum, and posted Monday to Thursday by tracked next-day Royal Mail. Each one goes out with a live-arrival guarantee and a 20% overcount as standard.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45172958888230,"sku":"PW10","price":5.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":49241540886822,"sku":"PW10","price":9.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":45172958953766,"sku":"PW50","price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":45172958920998,"sku":"PW100","price":40.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/powder-white-isopods-porcellionides-pruinosus-3612274.jpg?v=1779545722"},{"product_id":"penguin-isopods","title":"White Side \/ Penguin Isopods (Cubaris sp.)","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn five years of keeping isopods - and more than two decades keeping reptiles and other exotics before that - the White Side has stayed one of the small Cubaris I most enjoy watching. You will see this species sold under a few different names - most often White Side or Penguin, and sometimes labelled Cubaris White or simply \u003cem\u003eCubaris\u003c\/em\u003e sp. 'White Side' - but they are all the same animal. The names do the describing for you: a dark central body edged in clean white, so a group moving through leaf litter really does read like a little committee of penguins. They stay small, they cluster under cover, and once a colony settles they are one of the more rewarding of the accessible cave-type Cubaris. Every White Side we send is captive-bred, so you are starting with stock already used to life in a home enclosure rather than wild-collected animals that have to adjust to captivity first.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCubaris is the genus at the centre of the modern isopod hobby, and it covers a huge range - from eye-wateringly expensive Thai and Vietnamese cave species down to more attainable morphs like this one. The White Side sits at the accessible end: it has the genuine Cubaris look and behaviour, but it is more forgiving and quicker to get going than the premium cave species. If you have kept a hardier isopod and want your first proper Cubaris, this is a sensible place to begin. You can see how it fits alongside the rest of the genus in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/cubaris-isopods\"\u003eCubaris collection\u003c\/a\u003e, and if you have only kept the more familiar \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/rubber-ducky-isopods\"\u003eRubber Ducky\u003c\/a\u003e before, the care here will feel very similar.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhite Sides are one of the smaller Cubaris, compact and neat. The body is dark - charcoal through to near-black - with crisp white edging running along the sides, and that high-contrast border is what earns them both the White Side and Penguin names. Like all Cubaris they conglobate, rolling into a tight ball when disturbed, and they spend a good deal of time tucked under bark and in the substrate, so a settled colony rewards a bit of patience. Against a dark leaf-litter background the white margins really stand out, which makes them a satisfying display animal despite their size.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCare\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe single most important thing with any Cubaris is getting humidity and airflow right at the same time. They want things humid, but stagnant, waterlogged air is the usual killer of a Cubaris colony - so you are aiming for a moist enclosure with genuine cross-ventilation, not a sealed damp box. Mist to keep the substrate damp rather than soaking it. On warmth, a heated UK home at normal room temperature is usually fine, with only a little extra needed through the coldest months.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGive them a deep, nutritious substrate to burrow into. A good base is flake soil, white-rotted hardwood and organic topsoil, topped with a generous layer of leaf litter and a few pieces of bark for cover. We do not recommend building the substrate around coco coir - it holds moisture but offers little the isopods can actually feed on, and with Cubaris the substrate is part of the diet. Deep substrate matters for a second reason too: like other cave species they appreciate the security of burrowing, and a shallow setup leaves them exposed and unsettled. Everything you need to put a setup together is in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/accessories\"\u003eaccessories range\u003c\/a\u003e, and our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/complete-cubaris-isopod-care-guide\"\u003ecomplete Cubaris care guide\u003c\/a\u003e walks through enclosure, substrate and ventilation in full.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eDiet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhite Sides are detritivores, and the bulk of their diet is the leaf litter and white-rotted hardwood they live in. On top of that they take small amounts of fresh vegetables - things like courgette, carrot and squash - and benefit from occasional protein such as a little fish flake or dried shrimp, particularly when breeding. Calcium is not optional for a cave Cubaris: keep cuttlebone or crushed limestone available at all times to support moulting and a healthy colony. Clear away any uneaten fresh food within a day or two before it moulds in the humid enclosure. Our guide to \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/what-do-isopods-eat\"\u003ewhat isopods eat\u003c\/a\u003e covers the full picture if you want to build a proper feeding routine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike most cave-type Cubaris, White Sides are slow to start. A new colony spends its early months simply settling in and building numbers quietly, and it can be tempting to assume nothing is happening. Give them stable conditions - consistent warmth, reliable humidity with good airflow, deep substrate and steady calcium - leave them undisturbed, and once they are established they become a dependable, self-sustaining colony. Patience early on is repaid later. Adding springtails as a clean-up crew helps keep the enclosure healthy in the meantime; you will find those in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtails collection\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe White Side suits a keeper who has a little isopod experience and wants their first genuine Cubaris without the demanding care and cost of the premium cave species. If you can hold humidity steady while keeping the air moving, and you do not mind a species that takes its time to establish, this is a great choice - and a striking one on display. It is less suited to a complete beginner or to anyone after fast, hands-off results.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery colony is captive-bred and ships under our live arrival guarantee, sent in a double-walled box with sphagnum moss in a ventilated deli tub to travel safely. We dispatch Monday to Thursday to avoid animals sitting in the postal system over a weekend.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":45185689551142,"sku":"WSI10","price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":45185689583910,"sku":"WSI50","price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":45185689616678,"sku":"WSI20","price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/penguin_isopod-424757.jpg?v=1744059956"},{"product_id":"lava-isopods-porcellio-scaber","title":"Lava Isopods (Porcellio scaber)","description":"\u003cp\u003eUnder the fiery colouring sits the toughest animal in the hobby. The Lava is a selectively bred morph of \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e, the common rough woodlouse you would turn up under any garden plant pot, dressed in dramatic red, orange and black that genuinely reads like cooled volcanic rock. The looks are designer tier; the constitution is pure weed. That is the whole pitch, and it is why the Lava is one of the best-value striking morphs a new keeper can buy. Every colony we send is captive-bred here in the UK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOne quick note to avoid a common mix-up:\u003c\/strong\u003e this is the hardy European \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e 'Lava'. It is not our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/lava-isopods-ardentiella-sp\"\u003eLava Ardentiella\u003c\/a\u003e, which shares the name but is a demanding tropical species with completely different care.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdults reach around 15 to 17 mm, with the bumpy, textured shell that gives \u003cem\u003escaber\u003c\/em\u003e its name, Latin for 'rough'. A dark base is broken by warm orange and red, and the distribution varies animal to animal, so a colony looks like a scatter of individual little lava flows rather than a set of identical copies. That variation gives serious keepers something to line-breed toward if they want to push the colour brighter. Note that, being a \u003cem\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/em\u003e, the Lava does not conglobate; startled, it relies on staying still and playing dead rather than rolling into a ball.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eCare\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is where the Lava earns its beginner reputation. It handles a wide band of conditions, 21 to 29°C and humidity anywhere from 50 to 80%, so ordinary UK room temperature suits it the year round without a heat mat. Its ancestors are European, so it is built for our climate. Work to a moisture gradient rather than a single wet tub: keep about a third damp with sphagnum and leaf litter, let the rest run drier, and it will move between the two as it needs. Give at least 5 cm of organic topsoil and flake soil with plenty of leaf litter, rotting wood and cork bark over the top, and mix some limestone or crushed eggshell through for steady calcium.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDiet\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLava are unfussy generalists that will take almost any organic matter: a constant base of hardwood leaf litter and decaying wood, vegetable once or twice a week, occasional fruit, and mushroom, which they are keen on. The one thing not to skimp on is protein. Like all \u003cem\u003eP. scaber\u003c\/em\u003e they are protein-hungry and will turn on each other if underfed, so offer fish flake, dried daphnia or similar a couple of times a week, on the dry side where it will not spoil, alongside a permanent calcium source. A \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e completes the cleanup crew.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLava breed reliably and at a manageable, steady pace rather than an overwhelming one, which is a virtue if you would rather observe a colony than fight a population boom. Sub-adults often start before they are fully grown, a starter group throws visible mancae within four to eight weeks, and you will have a substantial colony inside six months. Not every baby carries the lava pattern, and selectively breeding the brightest is a genuine project; our notes on \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-genetics-colours-and-morphs\"\u003eisopod genetics and morphs\u003c\/a\u003e go further.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Lava suits almost anyone: a first designer morph for a new keeper, a hardy cleanup crew, or a breeding project for someone chasing brighter colour. It sits happily beside the black-and-white Moo Cow and the rest of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ethe Porcellio range\u003c\/a\u003e, and our guide to the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/different-types-of-porcellio-isopods\"\u003edifferent types of Porcellio\u003c\/a\u003e helps you compare. About the only keeper it does not suit is one set on watching an isopod conglobate, which this one will never do.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAll stock is captive-bred here in the UK and travels under our live arrival guarantee, in a ventilated deli tub with damp sphagnum inside a double-walled box. We post Monday to Thursday by Royal Mail next day before 1pm, with a 20% overcount in every order. Setup components are in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/accessories\"\u003eaccessories range\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":47415890346278,"sku":null,"price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":47415890411814,"sku":null,"price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"20","offer_id":47415898865958,"sku":"","price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/lava-isopods-porcellio-scaber-2263710.jpg?v=1772295673"},{"product_id":"thai-blue-angel","title":"Thai Blue Angel Isopods (Cubaris sp.)","description":"\u003cp\u003eShine a UV torch on most isopods and nothing happens. On a Thai Blue Angel, it lights up electric blue. This Thai \u003cem\u003eCubaris\u003c\/em\u003e genuinely fluoresces under UV-365 light, an electric-blue glow that is one of the few chances most keepers will get to see biofluorescence in their own animals, and a party trick almost nothing else in the hobby offers. Even in ordinary light it is a handsome, smooth, blue-grey isopod; under UV it is something else. Every colony we send is captive-bred here in the UK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is \u003cem\u003eCubaris\u003c\/em\u003e sp. 'Thai Blue Angel', a Thai species with a smooth, rounded body and a naturally cool blue-grey-to-silvery colour. Despite the premium looks it sits in the accessible tier of the genus alongside the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/panda-king\"\u003ePanda King\u003c\/a\u003e: hardy, prolific and forgiving of the odd husbandry slip in a way the sensitive cave rarities are not. One honest point on the name, though: the \"Blue Angel\" is a tendency, not a guarantee. Individuals range from white through blue-grey and silver to cream and even faintly orange, and the blue comes through most in mature adults, so young stock can look pale before it settles. The good news is that the UV glow works on every individual regardless of its daytime colour.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAppearance and behaviour\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA medium-to-large Cubaris at 12 to 20 mm, smooth-shelled with a subtle sheen that catches the light. Unusually for the genus it is a bark-clinger rather than a deep burrower, spending its time on the undersides of cork and wood, which makes it more visible and active than most Cubaris; give it plenty of bark and it rewards you by being out where you can see it. Like the rest of the genus it rolls into a tight ball when disturbed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eCare\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThai Blue Angels are warm-tropical and want 24 to 28°C, so winter heating is realistically needed in most UK homes, on a thermostat and mounted to the side. Keep humidity around 55 to 70% on a gradient, roughly a third damp and the rest drier, damp but never waterlogged. Because they cling to bark rather than dig, wood structure matters more here than for most Cubaris: stack cork and decaying white wood in various orientations, leaving gaps beneath for them to hold on to. Build the substrate on organic topsoil, flake soil and white-rotted hardwood rather than coco coir, with crushed limestone through it for constant calcium. Our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/complete-cubaris-isopod-care-guide\"\u003ecomplete Cubaris care guide\u003c\/a\u003e has the detail.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDiet\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn unfussy detritivore: leaf litter and decaying white wood as the constant base, with kinshi particularly well received, plus small amounts of vegetable, the occasional bit of fruit and regular protein such as fish flake or dried shrimp. Keep a permanent calcium source going, feed lightly and often rather than in big drops, since excess food moulds fast in the warmth, and let a \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e keep it in check.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Thai Blue Angel suits the keeper with a little experience stepping up into Cubaris, anyone drawn to the UV feature, and the display keeper who wants an elegant, visible, genuinely active Cubaris. It makes a sound stepping stone toward the demanding rarities like the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/rubber-ducky-isopods\"\u003eRubber Ducky\u003c\/a\u003e, and sits well beside the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/cappuccino-isopods\"\u003eCappuccino\u003c\/a\u003e and the tricolour \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/pak-chong\"\u003ePak Chong\u003c\/a\u003e. It is a poor fit for a cool, unheated room, or for anyone expecting every individual to be uniformly blue in daylight. The rest of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/cubaris-isopods\"\u003ethe genus\u003c\/a\u003e is there to compare.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAll stock is captive-bred here in the UK and travels under our live arrival guarantee, in a ventilated deli tub with damp sphagnum inside a double-walled box. We post Monday to Thursday by Royal Mail next day before 1pm, with a 20% overcount in every order.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":47924183105830,"sku":null,"price":35.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":47924183138598,"sku":null,"price":67.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"5","offer_id":47924183171366,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/cubaris_thai_blue_isopod_2-415751.jpg?v=1726787002"},{"product_id":"shiro-utsuri-isopods","title":"Shiro Utsuri Isopods (Nesodillo sp.)","description":"\u003cp\u003eI borrowed the name for these straight from the koi pond. Among koi keepers, a Shiro Utsuri is a black fish broken up with clean white markings, and the moment you see \u003cem\u003eNesodillo\u003c\/em\u003e sp. 'Shiro Utsuri' the reference makes sense. This is a Taiwanese isopod dressed in bold, high-contrast black and white, the sort of patterning that reads clearly from across a room rather than needing a hand lens to appreciate. It is one of the boldest black-and-white isopods around.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFully grown, they sit at around 15 to 20 mm, big enough to actually watch the markings shift as they move. No two are quite alike. Some individuals carry heavy black patches over a white base, others lean paler, so a settled colony gives you a spread of patterns rather than one repeated design. They are active and out on the surface, not secretive, so the markings are easy to enjoy. Like the rest of their family they conglobate, rolling into a tight ball when startled, and the contrast stays visible even on the curled body.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat I like about recommending them is that the drama does not come with fuss. They are hardy, forgiving of small mistakes, and settle into a new enclosure quickly, which is why I point beginners towards them so often. They are also reasonably prolific, with adults reaching breeding age at roughly six to eight months and broods a good size, so a colony builds steadily and keeps going for the two to three years these isopods tend to live.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eComing from subtropical Taiwan, they want more warmth and moisture than the Mediterranean species. I keep mine around 22 to 26°C, which most UK rooms hold year-round, though a cold, unheated room over winter is worth avoiding. Set the enclosure up with a humid gradient rather than a uniformly wet box: dampen one end well and leave the far end drier, so the animals can choose their comfort. Good cross-ventilation keeps the air fresh and holds off mould.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnderneath, give them a living substrate they can dig into and feed from, 5 to 8 cm deep for burrowing and steady humidity. I build mine on a moisture-retentive base with \u003ca href=\"\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e for nutrition, a constant source of calcium from cuttlebone or crushed shell for healthy moults, and a generous covering of leaf litter and decaying hardwood. A layer of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/large-magnolia-leaves-for-isopods\"\u003emagnolia leaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e doubles as food and cover. Keep it moist but never waterlogged. As undemanding detritivores they graze on the litter and wood, and I add the odd piece of carrot or courgette plus a little protein each week.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you are weighing up monochrome isopods, these sit in a useful spot. \u003ca href=\"\/products\/zebra-isopods\"\u003eZebra isopods\u003c\/a\u003e give you clean stripes and drier Mediterranean care, while Shiro Utsuri offer bolder, patchier markings and a tropical humidity profile. \u003ca href=\"\/products\/panda-king\"\u003ePanda King\u003c\/a\u003e Cubaris deliver a similar black-and-white punch but ask for more careful keeping, and \u003ca href=\"\/products\/snow-white\"\u003eSnow White\u003c\/a\u003e go the other way with a pure pale look. They also make peaceable cleanup crew, sitting happily alongside springtails and other isopods in humid bioactive vivariums for dart frogs, tree frogs and moisture-loving geckos. For bold contrast without the demanding husbandry, this is the one I reach for.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery order is captive-bred here, boxed double-walled around a ventilated tub of damp sphagnum, and posted Monday to Thursday by tracked next-day Royal Mail. Each one goes out with a live-arrival guarantee and a 20% overcount as standard.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":49398811001126,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":49398811033894,"sku":null,"price":35.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"5","offer_id":49398811066662,"sku":"","price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/ShiroUtsuriIsopods_Nesodillosp-159016.jpg?v=1724085075"},{"product_id":"trachelipus-caucasius","title":"Trachelipus caucasius Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eMost of the isopods in this hobby want steady warmth, so a species that shrugs off a cold room is a useful thing to have, and that is \u003cem\u003eTrachelipus caucasius\u003c\/em\u003e's trick. It comes from the Caucasus and the Black Sea coasts of Russia, Georgia and Turkey, a region of warm summers and hard winters, and it has brought that broad tolerance with it. Where a tropical species would sulk or stall in an unheated spare room, caucasius keeps going, which makes it one of the easier larger isopods to keep in a normal, occasionally chilly British house.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is a substantial animal, too. A large Trachelipus, reaching up to around 3 cm, it is grey with a warm orange or amber edging picked out along the segment margins, and the segmented, slightly flattened body gives it a low, armoured, faintly prehistoric look. It is easy to observe and makes a solid display animal, more understated than the bright Mediterranean morphs but handsome in a naturalistic way. It shares the flattened build of its better-known genus-mate the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/trachelipus-trilobatus\"\u003eTrilobite\u003c\/a\u003e, though caucasius runs larger.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike all \u003cem\u003eTrachelipus\u003c\/em\u003e it cannot pull the full pill-bug trick. Faced with trouble it stays flat and relies on speed and cover rather than rolling into a sealed ball the way an Armadillidium does. That is simply how the genus is built, not a shortcoming, and it puts caucasius in the same bracket as its relatives the neat \u003ca href=\"\/products\/trachelipus-difficilis-isopods\"\u003edifficilis\u003c\/a\u003e and the flat, dry-country \u003ca href=\"\/products\/coros-isopods\"\u003eCoros\u003c\/a\u003e rather than with the rollers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHousing is undemanding. A five to ten litre tub with a clip-lock lid and cross-ventilation on opposite walls suits a starter colony. Keep a moderate humidity with a gradient, around 55 to 70%: a damp corner under sphagnum and leaf litter with the rest allowed to breathe and dry between mistings. The temperature range is the easy part, anywhere from cool room conditions up to the mid-20s in Celsius, and it will sit happily at the lower end that would trouble a tropical species. Give them a living base of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e, rotted hardwood and organic topsoil around five centimetres deep, and keep a plain coco-coir base out of it, since it holds moisture but offers nothing to graze.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTop the substrate with a generous layer of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/large-magnolia-leaves-for-isopods\"\u003emagnolia and oak leaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e and cork bark for cover, and leave a calcium source such as cuttlebone or crushed eggshell in permanently for clean moults. Feeding is the standard detritivore spread: leaf litter and rotting wood always available, soft veg like courgette, carrot and squash a couple of times a week with leftovers lifted out promptly, and an occasional pinch of protein such as fish flake or dried insects to keep a breeding colony productive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBreeding is reliable once a colony settles, the female carrying young in her pouch and releasing live miniatures, and a starter group given warmth, calcium and steady food builds into a self-sustaining population over a season or two. A \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e alongside keeps mould in check around damp corners and protein scraps, and the two coexist without any bother. Every order travels as an established colony in a double-walled box around a ventilated tub of damp sphagnum, posted Monday to Thursday by tracked Royal Mail aiming for next-day delivery, packed with care and covered by our live-arrival guarantee.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":49458757796134,"sku":null,"price":30.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":49458757828902,"sku":null,"price":55.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"5","offer_id":49458757861670,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/trachelipus-caucasius-isopods-4283188.jpg?v=1764800351"},{"product_id":"powder-orange-dalmatian-isopods","title":"Powder Orange Dalmatian Isopods (Porcellionides pruinosus)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis one is two good things in one animal. The Powder Orange Dalmatian is the warm-orange Powder isopod, \u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e, overlaid with scattered black Dalmatian spotting and mottling, and that is a pairing you do not usually get together. Most orange morphs are a clean, even orange, and most Dalmatian spotting sits on a paler base, so a bright orange body dappled with dark flecks feels like a small treat every time one crosses the glass.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI list it as a distinct morph from the plain Powder Orange rather than a variation of it. Both share the soft powdery bloom, the pruinescence, that gives the Powder isopods their name and their dusted, icing-sugar finish, but only the Dalmatian carries those dark markings over the top. Spotting and orange intensity vary from animal to animal, and the pattern fills in as juveniles grow up, so no two look quite the same across a colony. It is one of the most cheerful little clean-up isopods I keep.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike all \u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e, these are quick. Where most isopods amble, this one is restless and fast, active day and night and out on the surface rather than tucked into the substrate, so it is one of the few clean-up crews you will actually sit and watch at work. It cannot conglobate either, so it will not roll into a ball the way an Armadillidium does. The flat, streamlined body is built for speed and for squeezing into cover, and a quick dash is its defence rather than armour.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGive it good cross-ventilation and a moderate moisture gradient rather than a wet box. I keep one side damp with leaf litter and sphagnum and let the other dry out, so the colony can settle wherever suits it. A few centimetres of substrate is plenty, as these are surface animals rather than deep burrowers, and I leave out some calcium, cuttlebone or crushed shell, for clean moulting. Room temperature in a heated home suits them. The main thing to plan for is escape, because they climb well and are honest escape artists, so a snug lid with plenty of small air holes will keep them where you want them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBeyond the looks, this is an extremely hardy, prolific little workhorse. It establishes fast, breeds quickly and works through decaying leaf litter and wood at pace, which makes it an excellent bioactive clean-up crew and the morph I reach for most in vivarium builds. It takes some protein alongside the leaf litter, a pinch of fish flake or dried daphnia now and then, to keep that breeding ticking over. The quick colony growth also makes it a renewable feeder for dart frogs and small reptiles, since the soft exoskeleton is easy to eat. None of this is demanding, which is why I happily point beginners at it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you like this one, it sits nicely alongside the plain \u003ca href=\"\/products\/powder-orange-isopods\"\u003ePowder Orange\u003c\/a\u003e and the pale \u003ca href=\"\/products\/powder-white-isopods\"\u003ePowder White\u003c\/a\u003e, and if you want a smaller, quieter burrower to work the deeper substrate the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/dwarf-white-isopods\"\u003eDwarf White\u003c\/a\u003e makes a good companion. For the enclosure itself I would build on a base of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e topped with \u003ca href=\"\/products\/large-magnolia-leaves-for-isopods\"\u003emagnolia leaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e, which gives them food, cover and a steady supply of the decay they feed on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery order is captive-bred here, boxed double-walled around a ventilated tub of damp sphagnum and posted Monday to Thursday by tracked next-day Royal Mail, with a live-arrival guarantee and a 20% overcount included as standard.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":51894241591678,"sku":null,"price":6.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":51894241624446,"sku":null,"price":45.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":51894241657214,"sku":null,"price":11.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":51894241689982,"sku":null,"price":25.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/powder_orange_dalmation_isopod-976826.jpg?v=1733441618"},{"product_id":"armadillidium-flavoscutatum-redhead","title":"Armadillidium flavoscutatum 'Redhead' Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe name points straight at the thing you notice first. The Redhead is \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium flavoscutatum\u003c\/em\u003e in a form that carries a vivid red-orange head shield above a shiny, near-black body, and the contrast is the whole appeal: a clean, almost lacquered dark shell topped with a bright head, unlike much else among the European isopods. Better still, it pairs that striking look with genuinely easy care. Every colony we send is captive-bred here in the UK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the Albanian 'Redhead' locality of \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium flavoscutatum\u003c\/em\u003e, a form found in Albania in the summer of 2023 and still fairly fresh in the hobby. Unlike the common spotted \"clown\" flavoscutatum, this population drops the yellow-and-white markings for a cleaner dark-body-and-red-head look. As a European species it is well suited to UK keeping, shrugging off the cooler temperatures and seasonal swing that would trouble a tropical isopod, and it sits comfortably among the more distinctive \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/armadillidium-isopods\"\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA medium-to-large Armadillidium at roughly 18 to 20 mm, glossy dark brown to black with that bright red-orange head shield. The finish is genuinely shiny, which lifts the contrast further, and the red is visible even on young animals, intensifying as they mature. They are true pill woodlice, rolling into a tight ball when disturbed, and a dark glossy bead topped with red is a particularly handsome thing curled up.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eCare\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the one point to get right, and it is simple: the Redhead is Mediterranean, not tropical. It prefers medium humidity, around 50 to 70%, with good airflow and a moisture gradient rather than uniform wet, a drier main area with one damp retreat. Overwetting and stagnant air are more of a risk than a slightly dry tub, so when in doubt err drier and keep the ventilation up. Normal UK room temperature, 18 to 26°C, works the year round. Give 5 to 8 cm of organic topsoil and flake soil with leaf litter, cork and white-rotted wood over the top, and mix limestone or crushed eggshell through for the calcium a healthy shell needs. Coco coir makes a poor base and is best left out.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDiet\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn unfussy detritivore: hardwood leaf litter and decaying wood always available, vegetable once or twice a week, the occasional bit of fruit, and regular protein to fuel the prolific breeding. Keep a constant calcium source, lift uneaten fresh food within a day or two, and a \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e will keep the damp zone clean.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the Redhead's real strengths: it breeds easily and throws notably large broods once its moderate Mediterranean conditions are met, so a colony builds quickly and reliably. Young emerge fully formed and already show the red head, deepening as they grow. Give it stable warmth, the right moisture gradient, steady calcium and a few hides for gravid females and it does the rest. Our notes on \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-calcium-guide\"\u003ecalcium\u003c\/a\u003e cover the mineral side that heavy breeders lean on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Redhead suits the beginner who wants something genuinely distinctive without demanding care, the collector after a fresh recently-found locality, and the display keeper who would rather actually see their isopods, since this one is calm and out across day and night. It sits well beside the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/zebra-isopods\"\u003eZebra\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/gestroi-isopods\"\u003eGestroi\u003c\/a\u003e, the marbled \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/armadillidium-espanyoli-marbelized\"\u003eEspanyoli\u003c\/a\u003e and the bold \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/skeleton-nebula-isopods\"\u003eSkeleton Nebula\u003c\/a\u003e. It is a poor fit only for a uniformly wet tropical setup.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery colony is captive-bred from established UK stock and ships under our live arrival guarantee, in a ventilated deli tub with damp sphagnum inside a double-walled box. We dispatch Monday to Thursday by Royal Mail next day before 1pm, with a 20% overcount in every order.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"5","offer_id":54873972703614,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"10","offer_id":54873972638078,"sku":null,"price":37.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":54873972670846,"sku":null,"price":70.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/armadillidium-flavoscutatum-redhead-isopods-9666833.jpg?v=1783785793"},{"product_id":"oreo-crumble-isopods","title":"Oreo Crumble Isopods (Porcellionides pruinosus)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe question I get asked about these more than any other is whether they are Dairy Cows. They are not, and the confusion is understandable, because both are black-and-white woodlice sold to the same people for the same jobs. But they are different animals from different genera, and buying the wrong one for your setup is a mildly annoying mistake worth avoiding.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSide by side the differences are obvious. The \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow\u003c\/a\u003e is \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e: bigger, chunkier, with bold blotches on a heavier body and an appetite for protein that makes it a genuine risk to soft-bodied tankmates if it goes hungry. The Oreo Crumble is \u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e: smaller, flatter, considerably faster, and finished in a soft powdery bloom that the Dairy Cow does not have. Neither rolls into a ball, which catches out anyone expecting pill bug behaviour.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWhat they actually look like\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA pale cream-to-white base scattered with irregular black piebald patterning, no two animals marked the same way. Over the top sits the pruinescence, a fine surface coating that gives the whole colony a matte, dusted finish and shows up dramatically under a camera flash. The pattern reads clearly against dark substrate and leaf litter, which is a large part of why the morph became popular.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThey stay around 10 to 15 mm, and unlike a lot of woodlice they are out and visible during the day, so the pattern you paid for is on show rather than hidden under bark.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eA designer morph, and worth being straight about it\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePorcellionides pruinosus\u003c\/em\u003e is a genuinely widespread species found across the Mediterranean, much of Europe and into southwest Asia, and it has been selectively bred into a whole family of colour forms. Oreo Crumble is one of those: a captive-bred designer line rather than a wild population, and the pied pattern does not occur naturally.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eI mention it because some listings imply a wild origin or an exotic locality, and there is not one. What you are buying is the product of somebody's breeding project, which is a perfectly good thing to be, and it comes with the practical advantage that it inherits the parent species' famously bulletproof constitution. Other names you will see used are Powder Oreo Crumble and simply Oreo Crumbles.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCare, in short\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eStraightforward, and identical to the rest of the powder morphs. If you already keep \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/powder-orange-isopods\"\u003ePowder Oranges\u003c\/a\u003e you can run these exactly the same way and skip the rest of this section.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eModerate humidity with real ventilation is the formula. Lay 5 cm or so of a nutritious base such as our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/substrate-for-invertebrates\"\u003einvertebrate substrate\u003c\/a\u003e, keep one end damper than the other, and top it with hardwood leaf litter. \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/large-magnolia-leaves-for-isopods\"\u003eMagnolia leaves\u003c\/a\u003e stand up well to a colony that eats at this rate. Pile in cork bark, because these spend most of their downtime wedged underneath something and extra surfaces effectively enlarge the tub.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe single failure mode is a sealed, stagnant, uniformly wet enclosure. That combination invites mites and culture crashes, and it is the one thing this otherwise forgiving morph will not tolerate. Ordinary heated UK room temperature is fine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eFeeding a fast colony\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLeaf litter and rotting hardwood underpin the diet, and a colony in full swing gets through both quickly, so check more often than you would with a slower species. Add protein weekly as dried shrimp or fish flake, and keep \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/cuttlebone-100g\"\u003ecuttlebone\u003c\/a\u003e permanently available, because animals that moult this often are spending calcium constantly. Keepers report that pattern definition holds up better on a calcium-supported diet, which matches what I see.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWhat they are good for\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eGenuinely three things at once, which is unusual.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs a \u003cstrong\u003ecleanup crew\u003c\/strong\u003e they process leaf litter, biofilm and waste at a rate that suits a busy bioactive enclosure. Run them alongside a \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e and the two divide the work neatly, springtails on mould and the microscopic layer, isopods on everything with more substance to it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs a \u003cstrong\u003estarter species\u003c\/strong\u003e they are about as forgiving as the hobby gets, and they establish fast enough that a beginner finds out within weeks rather than months whether their husbandry is working.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs a \u003cstrong\u003edisplay animal\u003c\/strong\u003e they are better than their reputation. Most people buy pruinosus morphs as workhorses and then find themselves watching the tub, because a surface-active monochrome colony against dark leaf litter is a genuinely good-looking thing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThey also work as feeders, though at this morph's price point most people keep the plain lines for that and enjoy these for what they look like.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWho they suit\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAnyone, honestly. A sensible first isopod, a useful addition to a vivarium, and a fun collector's piece for someone assembling a range of morphs. The rest of the family is in the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/porcellionides-isopods\"\u003ePorcellionides collection\u003c\/a\u003e, and the wider catalogue in \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/isopods-for-sale\"\u003eisopods for sale\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eArriving with you\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCaptive-bred here in the UK and posted Monday to Thursday only, so nothing sits in the network over a weekend. They travel by Royal Mail next day by 1pm in a double-walled box, in ventilated deli tubs on damp sphagnum moss, with a 20% overcount and our live arrival guarantee. Tip them into the enclosure rather than unpacking on a worktop; these move quickly and they will use the opportunity.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":54876817097086,"sku":null,"price":6.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":54876817129854,"sku":null,"price":45.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":54876817162622,"sku":null,"price":11.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":54876817195390,"sku":null,"price":25.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/powder-oreo-crumble-isopods-porcellionides-pruinosus-3897168.jpg?v=1783785792"},{"product_id":"deperessum-magic-potion","title":"Armadillidium depressum 'Magic Potion' Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eTwo different woodlice go by the name Magic Potion, and it is worth knowing which one you are looking at. The familiar version is a morph of the common pill bug, \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium vulgare\u003c\/em\u003e. This is the other one: \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium depressum\u003c\/em\u003e 'Magic Potion', the same soft, milky-pale look with scattered yellow markings, carried on a flatter, slightly larger European species. The result is a gently translucent, cream-and-gold animal that stands apart from the usual grey-brown run of native isopods, with a shape all its own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA. depressum\u003c\/em\u003e, the Southern Pill Woodlouse, is a hardy western European species found across the UK, France and neighbouring regions, which makes it well suited to keeping here without any fuss over heating. Compared with the high-domed vulgare it is noticeably flatter and more splayed across the back, a body built for squeezing into cracks in old stone walls. That flatter build changes one behaviour worth flagging: where \u003cem\u003eA. vulgare\u003c\/em\u003e seals into a perfect ball, depressum only rolls part of the way, leaving a small gap between head and tail. It is normal for the species, not a fault, and a handy way to tell the two Magic Potions apart.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe care is where this one earns its keep, because it pairs an unusual look with an easy temperament. It sits among the more collectable \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/em\u003e alongside the marbled \u003ca href=\"\/products\/armadillidium-espanyoli-marbelized\"\u003eEspanyoli\u003c\/a\u003e and the boldly striped \u003ca href=\"\/products\/zebra-isopods\"\u003eZebra\u003c\/a\u003e, and if you want to compare it directly you can see the standard \u003ca href=\"\/products\/magic-potion-isopods\"\u003evulgare Magic Potion\u003c\/a\u003e and the plain \u003ca href=\"\/products\/armadillidium-depressum-isopods\"\u003eSouthern Pill Woodlouse\u003c\/a\u003e too. One husbandry point matters more than any other with this species: despite what some care charts suggest, depressum is a European animal that prefers drier, airy conditions, not constant tropical damp.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAim for a moderate humidity around 50 to 65% with a clear moisture gradient and decent airflow. In practice that means one lightly misted corner under sphagnum where moulting animals can retreat, and the rest of the tub left to dry between waterings. They struggle to moult in a stagnant, sodden setup, so if you have kept tropical species before, err drier here and keep the ventilation up. Normal UK room temperature, roughly 17 to 23°C, suits them the year round, and they shrug off the seasonal ups and downs that would trouble a warm-climate isopod.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGive them a five to ten litre tub with cross-ventilation, then a living substrate of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e, well-rotted hardwood and organic topsoil about five to eight centimetres deep for burrowing and moulting. I would skip a pure coco-coir base, which holds damp but feeds nothing; the wood-and-leaf mix doubles as food as it rots down. Top it with magnolia and oak leaf litter, add cork bark and a few pieces of white-rotted wood, and keep calcium, cuttlebone, crushed limestone or eggshell, available throughout for firm moults.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFeeding is straightforward. Leaf litter and rotting wood stay down as the staple; add soft veg such as carrot, courgette and squash once or twice a week, lift out what is not eaten, and offer a little protein now and then, keeping in mind that \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/em\u003e need far less of it than the hungry Porcellio do. Breeding takes care of itself once the drier gradient is right: females carry young in the brood pouch and release live miniatures in good-sized broods, and the pale colouring fills in as they mature, so a settled colony grows into a striking, self-sustaining display.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePair them with a \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e to handle mould in the damp corner, or browse the wider \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/armadillidium-isopods\"\u003eArmadillidium collection\u003c\/a\u003e to build out the genus. Every order is captive-bred, packed in a double-walled box around a ventilated tub of damp sphagnum and posted Monday to Thursday by tracked next-day Royal Mail, with a 20% overcount and a live-arrival guarantee on every parcel.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":54876999057790,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":54876999090558,"sku":null,"price":35.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"5","offer_id":54876999123326,"sku":null,"price":12.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/depressum_magic_potions.jpg?v=1772805950"},{"product_id":"yin-yang-isopods-porcellio-scaber","title":"Porcellio scaber 'Yin Yang' Isopods for Sale UK","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis page used to describe an animal with black, orange and red patterning. That was wrong, and it had been wrong for a while. 'Yin Yang' is a pied woodlouse: irregular blocks of white broken across a dark ground, no orange in it anywhere. The description had drifted off another morph's copy, we have corrected it, and the photographs are what you should trust.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat you are actually buying\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eUnderneath the trade name this is \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e, the common rough woodlouse, the same species that lives under every damp log in Britain. The pied pattern is a selected line rather than a species difference. You will meet the identical animal sold as 'Pied', 'Piebald' or 'Pied Panda', chiefly in the UK, and American sellers list it as Piebald without ever using the Yin Yang name at all. No breeder or origin is recorded for the line anywhere I can find.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWorth knowing what kind of morph it is, because the categories get muddled. Pied works by pigment loss in patches, so the pattern is blocky and irregular and no two animals match. That is different from the spotted morphs like \u003ca href=\"\/products\/porcellio-scaber-dalmation-isopods\"\u003eDalmatian\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"\/products\/moo-cow\"\u003eMoo Cow\u003c\/a\u003e, which put small discrete spots on a pale ground, and different again from the pigment-reduction morphs like \u003ca href=\"\/products\/scaber-whiteout-isopods-porcellio\"\u003eWhiteout\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"\/products\/scaber-ghost-isopods-porcellio\"\u003eGhost\u003c\/a\u003e, which lose colour across the whole animal rather than in patches. Expect variation between individuals, and expect some of the offspring to come out closer to wild type. Nobody has published breeding ratios for this line, so I will not quote you one.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eKeeping them\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the easy end of the hobby. Adults come in around 15 to 18mm, they are hardy, they breed quickly, and they will forgive most beginner mistakes. An ordinary room does the job, roughly 17°C up to 26°C, and nothing here needs heating in a British house.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRun a moisture gradient rather than a wet box. Damp at one end, dry at the other, around 55 to 70 per cent overall, with decent ventilation. Five to eight centimetres of substrate is plenty, built on topsoil with decayed hardwood and leaf mould stirred in, then topped with a generous litter layer and some bark to shelter beneath.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTwo things this species genuinely wants. Calcium is a permanent fixture, either cuttlebone or crushed limestone. And \u003cem\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/em\u003e are protein-hungry in a way that \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/em\u003e are not, so a pinch of fish flake or dried shrimp once or twice a week keeps a colony productive rather than merely alive. One more thing to note about the genus: they do not roll into a ball. A startled scaber does not curl up, it runs for the nearest edge.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWho it suits\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBeginners, cleanup crews and anyone after a patterned isopod that asks nothing complicated of them. They work well in a bioactive vivarium and they multiply fast enough to keep up with the job. If you would rather have several patterns in one culture, the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/porcellio-scaber-mix-isopods\"\u003escaber mix\u003c\/a\u003e is the lottery version, and the wider \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ePorcellio range\u003c\/a\u003e has the larger Spanish species for later on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery culture is packed over wet sphagnum in a vented pot, that pot boxed within a second wall of card. Posting stops on Thursday so nothing of ours idles through a Sunday. It travels tracked, next-day, ahead of 1pm. We tuck in a few spares above your count, and we guarantee they reach you alive.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":55284118913406,"sku":null,"price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":55284118946174,"sku":null,"price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":55284118978942,"sku":null,"price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/ying-yang-isopods-porcellio-scaber-9137284.jpg?v=1779556631"},{"product_id":"rust-isopods-porcellio-scaber","title":"Porcellio scaber 'Rust' Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eRust is the understated one in the \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e line-up. No neon, no high contrast, just a clean warm reddish-brown, like weathered iron or an autumn leaf, on the toughest, most forgiving isopod in the hobby. It is the same common rough woodlouse you would turn up under a flowerpot, in a quietly nicer colour, and that combination of easy care and a warm tone makes it one of the better starter morphs going. Every colony we send is captive-bred here in the UK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eIntroduction\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the Rust colour form of \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e, the common rough woodlouse, a foundation species of the whole hobby. Native to western Europe and now found across temperate regions worldwide, it is about as hardy as an isopod gets. Its species name, \u003cem\u003escaber\u003c\/em\u003e, is Latin for \"rough\", after the bumpy shell that separates it from the smooth \u003cem\u003eP. laevis\u003c\/em\u003e species like \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow\u003c\/a\u003e. The Rust sits naturally beside the other \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/a\u003e forms in our range.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdults reach around 17 mm, with the textured, bumpy shell that gives the rough woodlouse its name, in a warm reddish to orange-brown that shows beautifully against dark substrate and bark. There is gentle variation across a colony, which adds depth without losing the overall warm cast. Being a \u003cem\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/em\u003e, it does not conglobate: startled, it flattens and scurries for cover or clamps tight to a flat surface rather than rolling into a ball. Different behaviour to a pillbug, and just as good to watch.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eCare\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is where Rust earns its beginner billing, because it tolerates almost anything: temperature swings, humidity wobble, the odd missed feed. Aim for 18 to 26°C, which ordinary UK room temperature covers the year round, and moderate humidity around 60 to 75% on a gradient, one damp side, the rest drier, with good airflow to keep the air fresh. Give 5 to 8 cm of organic topsoil and flake soil with plenty of leaf litter and, importantly, flat cork bark, which is its favourite hide given the way it clamps flat. Mix limestone or crushed eggshell through for steady calcium, and leave coco coir out as a base. It is genuinely hard to get wrong.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eDiet\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn unfussy generalist: a constant base of hardwood leaf litter and decaying wood, vegetable once or twice a week, the occasional soft fruit, and, importantly, regular protein, since like all \u003cem\u003eP. scaber\u003c\/em\u003e it is protein-hungry and will turn on its own if underfed. Keep a permanent calcium source, set fresh food on the drier side so it does not spoil, and a \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/springtails-for-sale\"\u003espringtail culture\u003c\/a\u003e completes the cleanup crew.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRust breeds very prolifically once established, which is exactly what you want from a starter colony or a cleanup crew: a small group builds into a substantial one quickly, with fully-formed young released from the female's brood pouch and colouring up over successive moults. Give it steady warmth, a moisture gradient, good calcium and regular protein and it simply gets on with it. For more on how the colour forms work, see our notes on \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/isopod-genetics-colours-and-morphs\"\u003eisopod colour and morphs\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWho is this for?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRust suits the first-time keeper who wants a starter that forgives mistakes, the bioactive or reptile keeper after a hardy, prolific cleanup crew, and anyone building a scaber cluster beside the wild-type \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/porcellio-scaber-mix-isopods\"\u003eScaber Mix\u003c\/a\u003e, the contrast \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/yin-yang-isopods-porcellio-scaber\"\u003eYin Yang\u003c\/a\u003e and the fiery \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/lava-isopods-porcellio-scaber\"\u003eLava\u003c\/a\u003e. It is not the one to choose if you specifically want an isopod that rolls into a ball, or a rare exotic showpiece.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEvery colony is captive-bred from established UK stock and ships under our live arrival guarantee, in a ventilated deli tub with damp sphagnum inside a double-walled box. We dispatch Monday to Thursday by Royal Mail next day before 1pm, with a 20% overcount so nothing sits in the post over a weekend.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":55413044216190,"sku":null,"price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":55413044248958,"sku":null,"price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":55413044281726,"sku":null,"price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/Scaber_Rust_Isopods.jpg?v=1744041651"},{"product_id":"porcellio-scitus-isopods","title":"Porcellio Scitus Isopods","description":"\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMany live under the notion that isopods are easy to keep, but that is far from true unless you are a committed person willing to put in the effort required. Although small, isopods have certain requirements that must be met to see them happy and healthy away from their natural habitat. For beginners with little or no knowledge about crustaceans, Porcellio Scitus is a good choice as they are easy to maintain and don’t have too many requirements to feel overwhelmed.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus Isopods: A Glimpse\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOrigin: Europe\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eScientific Name: Porcellio scaber\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDifficulty: Easy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRarity: Not rare\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSize: Up to 1.7 cm\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTemperature: 18-27°C\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHumidity: 70-80%\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFavorable Foods: Decaying plant matter, leaf litter, fruits, veggies, fish flakes, shrimp pellets.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAn Overview\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAmong the various isopods originating from Europe, you have Porcellio Scitus, which belongs to the larger Porcellio scaber group and is found in high-humidity areas. The good thing is that these isopods are not rare, so you can easily buy them from online breeders and pet supply shops that deal in crustaceans.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus can grow up to 1.7 cm and is comparatively more active than other isopods, so it is fun to watch in a terrarium. But the easy-care level and minimum requirements make these isopods a preferred choice among keepers, particularly those who are new. Also, they can thrive in a wide range of conditions as long as their basic needs are met; you don’t need to worry about your isopods struggling or unhappy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus Isopods: Basic Care\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThough low maintenance, Porcellio Scitus has a few basic needs that must be fulfilled if you want to own them as pets.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOriginally found in Europe, they prefer temperatures between 18°C and 27°C. Therefore, maintain the same temperature within the terrarium and ensure it doesn’t fluctuate too much, or else there can be problems.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAs for humidity, Porcellio Scitus isopods do best when the level is 70% to 80% high, how they like it in their natural habitat.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eYour isopods need a moist place to live so they can grow and be healthy. Therefore, you cannot have the terrarium go dry ever. Provide both a wet and dry side so they can move between the zones and have a good life in captivity.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus Isopods: Feeding\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus isopods are not different from other crustaceans when it concerns food. They are detritivores and love to feed on dead and decaying organic matter available in abundance in their natural habitat. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhen in captivity, their diet should contain leaf litter, rotting wood, and decaying plant matter so they can derive the required nutrition from it and not feel starved. The safest item to offer them include sliced veggies, fruits, fish flakes, and shrimp pellets, which contribute to their overall well-being and make them strong enough to reproduce.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus Isopods: Appearance \u0026amp; Behaviour\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus isopods have two pairs of antennae and several small legs under their bodies as they have a segmented body type. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThey mostly grew upto 1.7 cm, and are found in varying shades of grey and brown, which helps them blend into their surroundings and avoid being spotted easily.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus are active at night but hide under leaves, bark, or cork pieces during the day so they can be safe from predators and not be disturbed.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus Isopods: Habitat\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNo matter what isopod species it is, they need a suitable habitat to survive, and unless the requirement is met, you cannot see them grow or thrive. You can create the right habitat with a plastic container with good ventilation and plenty of decaying organic matter essential for their survival, therefore, not to be taken lightly. Besides, you need to add a moist corner, but not too wet, so they can breathe and moult without dying.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePorcellio Scitus Isopods: Substrate Mix\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eYou cannot do without a good substrate mix containing organic topsoil, leaf litter, crushed decaying wood, and calcium sources, as it is the foundation of their habitat and encourages natural behaviour. You can also add charcoal pieces to remove bad odour and keep the substrate fresh for a long time without replacing it. Also, stir the substrate occasionally to distribute the nutrients and prevent mould buildup within the enclosure.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eColonies leave on the overnight tracked service between Monday and Thursday, bedded on moist sphagnum in a perforated tub within doubled card. Your count is topped up by 20%, and their arriving alive is guaranteed.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":55413587640702,"sku":null,"price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":55413587673470,"sku":null,"price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":55413587706238,"sku":null,"price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/Porcellio_Scitus_Isopod.jpg?v=1744040802"},{"product_id":"porcellio-laevis-milk-back-isopods","title":"Porcellio Laevis Milk Back Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn Britain this animal is in trouble. Not the morph - the species. \u003cem\u003ePorcellio laevis\u003c\/em\u003e lived in stables, cattle yards and dung heaps, and as working horses disappeared and cattle husbandry modernised it went with them. There are very few modern British records - the published review names two since 2000, against a species that has been here since the thirteenth century - there are sub-fossil remains from a medieval pit at Stonar in East Kent. The same animal is among the most heavily traded isopods on earth and a declining British native at once. We find that worth knowing while you keep a tub of them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe animal\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSmooth-backed - the fastest way to tell it from the rough-shelled \u003cem\u003eP. scaber\u003c\/em\u003e - and reaching 20mm. Males carry long spear-shaped uropods at the rear. The species group it belongs to is North African in origin, and it is now genuinely cosmopolitan - it has been synonym list reads like the same animal being named again on four continents, which is why the world checklist carries more than two dozen entries for it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Milk Back' describes creamy white markings over a smooth grey body. We should be straight that the trade does not agree on this: of ten independent sellers using the name, some describe a white stripe down the back, two describe a chocolate-brown animal, one says marbled, and several give no description at all. Ours look as our photographs show. Take the name as a rough guide to what arrives, not a specification.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eMilk Back and Dairy Cow\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWe sell both, and no source we can find distinguishes them. Both are piebald grey-and-white \u003cem\u003eP. laevis\u003c\/em\u003e. One seller who lists both runs identical species text on each page and separates them by a single sentence. If you want the difference in our stock it is that \u003ca href=\"\/products\/dairy-cow-isopods\"\u003eDairy Cow\u003c\/a\u003e tends to irregular patches while these run more organised along the back - but that is our observation of our own colonies, not a described character, and no genetics has been published for either.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eKeeping them, and a correction\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis listing gave humidity as 60 to 80% with a dry side, and warned against letting the tub turn into a swamp. The gradient advice was right and stands. The band was too wet: four other sellers put this animal at 40 to 70% and one calls it semi-arid outright. We have brought the numbers down to fifty to seventy, still graded, still with a genuinely dry end. Temperature 18 to 26°C, no heat needed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSubstrate 5 to 7cm, deep \u003ca href=\"\/products\/leaf-litter-1l\"\u003eleaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e, bark to hide under, permanent calcium. Protein regularly - keepers describe this species as protein-hungry more often than almost any other, though we should say that is trade lore rather than a measured requirement.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNo conglobation here. Nothing in this genus can close into a ball.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eTwo warnings we should not have cut\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThey climb, and they are accomplished escapers. A close-fitting lid is not optional.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAnd be careful what you put them in with. This is a fast, bold, protein-hungry animal, and an underfed colony will go looking for protein - which in a mixed vivarium can mean nipping soft-bodied tank mates or a shedding reptile. They can also outcompete slower species outright. Feed them well and think twice before adding them to anything with vulnerable neighbours. Never give them access to standing water either; woodlice drown in it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eHow fast they breed\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eUnusually for this catalogue, there are real numbers. A published study found females first reproducing at around seven months, breeding up to seven times regardless of season, averaging just over three broods each, with an average of about sixty-seven young per brood at intervals of roughly eight weeks - our old page said 20 to 40, and that figure has gone. Another gives a lifespan of twelve to eighteen months across nine or ten moults. That is a fast, short-lived animal, and it explains why a starter culture becomes a full tub inside a year.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePosted early in the week on the pre-1pm service, in an air-holed tub bedded on moist moss inside a double-skinned box, with a fifth again over your stated quantity and a live arrival guarantee the whole way. The rest of the group sits under \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ePorcellio\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":55881641165182,"sku":null,"price":2.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":55881641197950,"sku":null,"price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"100","offer_id":55881641230718,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"200","offer_id":55881641263486,"sku":null,"price":37.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/porcellio-laevis-milk-back-isopods-7537618.jpg?v=1778928251"},{"product_id":"sandstone-isopods","title":"Armadillidium scaberrimum 'Sandstone' Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eFor years this animal moved through the hobby under the wrong name. Stock now sold as the \u003cstrong\u003eSandstone Isopod\u003c\/strong\u003e was traded as \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium omblae\u003c\/em\u003e, and it was never that species. The distinction is worth getting right, because this was not a renaming. \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium omblae\u003c\/em\u003e has not gone anywhere. It is a valid species with its own description, a different animal entirely, and it still carries that name today. What happened is that hobby stock was misidentified, and the misidentification has since been corrected. The animal on this page is \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium scaberrimum\u003c\/em\u003e, described by Stein in 1859.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe trade name is an honest description of the texture and a poor description of the colour. The carapace is rough all over, covered in low spiny lumps that catch the light and break up its outline, and that is where the sandstone idea comes from. The colour is not sandy at all. It runs pinkish-lilac through to a soft lilac-grey, and a freshly moulted individual often shows a bluish cast down the line of the spine before the pigment settles back. Anyone expecting a beige desert isopod will get something cooler in tone and better looking. Adults reach about 20mm, so the sculpting is visible across the tub without a lens.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eUnderneath the shell this is a straightforward Balkan pill woodlouse, native to Croatia and the wider Balkans, and unusually tolerant of a broad spread of conditions. It conglobates like every true pill woodlouse, closing into a ball when disturbed, and the lumpy finish stays on show around the outside of that ball. Activity runs through the day as much as the night and is not confined to darkness, so a settled group is one you actually see rather than one you keep on trust.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWarm room, dry floor\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTemperature is the uncomplicated part. Anywhere from 17 to 26°C suits it, and the band is wide enough that the seasons look after themselves. Humidity is where keepers go wrong. Aim for 50 to 65 per cent, drier than most people expect from a pill woodlouse, and arrange it as a slope from damp to dry, never one flat reading. In practice I keep about a fifth of the floor area damp and let the remaining four fifths run dry. Medium ventilation goes with that, enough airflow that moisture leaves the enclosure instead of hanging in it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eSubstrate and feeding\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA nutritious base substrate 5 to 8cm deep is all this species needs. Cover it with a generous layer of dry hardwood leaf litter, which gives the colony shelter and something to graze at for weeks on end, and add bark for the group to gather under. There is always cuttlebone or crushed shell in my tubs, because clean moults depend on a constant supply. Vegetables go down readily and an occasional protein source keeps things ticking over.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eUndemanding, robust and hard to upset, this is a sensible pill woodlouse for anyone stepping past their first species. It is prolific, though not in the way people picture: it produces large broods at intervals rather than a steady trickle of young, so numbers can sit still for weeks and then jump. Adults last two to three years. If the Adriatic angle appeals, \u003ca href=\"\/products\/clown-isopods\"\u003ethe Clown\u003c\/a\u003e comes off the same stretch of Croatian coast and is the bold-patterned opposite of this one, with \u003ca href=\"\/products\/skeleton-nebula-isopods\"\u003eSkeleton-Nebula\u003c\/a\u003e a second line of that same species. For more texture, we also keep the spiny \u003ca href=\"\/products\/armadillidium-beieri\"\u003eBeier's Pill Woodlouse\u003c\/a\u003e, and \u003ca href=\"\/products\/granulatum-isopods\"\u003eArmadillidium granulatum\u003c\/a\u003e is the pebbled Spaniard. Our \u003ca href=\"\/blogs\/isopods-useful-articles\/care-for-armadillidium-isopods\"\u003eArmadillidium care guide\u003c\/a\u003e covers the genus, and the \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/armadillidium-isopods\"\u003ewider Armadillidium range\u003c\/a\u003e shows what else sits on that shelf.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSandstone go out over damp sphagnum, the deli tub vented, the outer box carrying two walls of card. Posting days run Monday to Thursday with nothing after that, next-day Royal Mail with tracking, before 1pm, so no group of ours spends a Saturday in a sorting office. Counts include spares beyond what you asked for, and the live-arrival guarantee applies as always.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"5","offer_id":56155321991550,"sku":null,"price":17.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"10","offer_id":56155322024318,"sku":null,"price":30.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":56155322057086,"sku":null,"price":55.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/sandstone-isopods-armadillidium-scaberrimum-6710393.jpg?v=1767035956"},{"product_id":"porcellio-scaber-mix-isopods","title":"Porcellio scaber Mix Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eIf you want the easiest, cheapest way into the world of \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e colour morphs, this is where I'd point you. The Rough Woodlouse Mix is exactly what it sounds like, a grab-bag of established scaber morphs all bundled into one tub, so instead of buying a single line you get a little of everything in one go. Every batch is a bit different, but you can expect a spread of the oranges, dalmatians, pieds and other morphs I've bred over the years, jumbled together into one starter colony.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI put these mixes together for a simple reason. Picking one morph before you know the species is a lot to ask, and buying several separately gets expensive fast. A mix lets you keep a colourful colony from day one, learn to spot the different forms as they grow, and work out which ones you actually want to chase. If a particular line grabs you later, you can always start a pure colony of it down the road, whether that's a \u003ca href=\"\/products\/moo-cow\"\u003eMoo Cow\u003c\/a\u003e, a \u003ca href=\"\/products\/rust-isopods-porcellio-scaber\"\u003eRust\u003c\/a\u003e or a \u003ca href=\"\/products\/lava-isopods-porcellio-scaber\"\u003eLava\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnderneath the colours, this is the common Rough Woodlouse, the same animal you'll find under any damp log in a British garden. The name scaber is Latin for rough, after the pebbled, slightly tuberculed shell that catches the light and gives every morph a bit of extra depth. That familiarity is a good thing. \u003cem\u003ePorcellio scaber\u003c\/em\u003e is one of the hardiest, most forgiving isopods I keep. Adults reach around 17 to 18 mm and live two to three years, and they breed fast and freely, so a small starter group becomes a busy colony in a matter of months. If you've never kept isopods before, I can't think of a better place to begin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCare is refreshingly plain. These live happily at normal room temperature, no heat mat needed in most UK homes, and they aren't fussy about their setup. Unlike the pill woodlice, \u003cem\u003eP. scaber\u003c\/em\u003e doesn't roll into a ball when startled, it flattens out and bolts for cover, relying on speed instead. Give them a moderate moisture gradient, roughly 50 to 70% with one damp end and one drier, and pair it with good ventilation. This is not an animal that wants a wet, stuffy box.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe one thing I'd stress is protein. These are hungry animals, and a colony left short of it will start nibbling its own moulting members, which is the last thing you want. Keep a protein source available and they'll leave each other alone. A few centimetres of substrate is plenty, since these aren't deep burrowers, so a base of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/flake-soil\"\u003eflake soil\u003c\/a\u003e with a good layer of \u003ca href=\"\/products\/large-magnolia-leaves-for-isopods\"\u003emagnolia leaf litter\u003c\/a\u003e on top gives them somewhere to live, most of what they eat, and enough moisture to keep the colony ticking over on its own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGive them time and they'll reward you. As the colony grows you'll watch the morphs sort themselves out, learn to tell one form from another, and start noticing which individuals carry the colours you like best. If you fancy trying your hand at the genetics, the mix gives you plenty of material to play with, since forms like orange and dalmatian follow simple, well-documented inheritance you can separate out and breed for. When you're ready to go further, the rest of the \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/porcellio-isopods\"\u003ePorcellio collection\u003c\/a\u003e is waiting.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery order is captive-bred, and I box it double-walled around a ventilated tub of damp sphagnum before posting Monday to Thursday by tracked next-day Royal Mail, with a live-arrival guarantee and a 20% overcount included as standard.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"10","offer_id":57148894347646,"sku":null,"price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":57148894413182,"sku":null,"price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"50","offer_id":57148894380414,"sku":null,"price":50.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"100","offer_id":57290400039294,"sku":null,"price":90.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/porcellio-scaber-mix-isopods-6820681.jpg?v=1774132518"},{"product_id":"armadillidium-vulgare-orange-vigor","title":"Armadillidium Vulgare Orange Vigor Isopods","description":"\u003cp\u003eIf you like the hardiness of the common pill woodlouse but want something with real colour, Orange Vigor is the morph to look at. This is a selectively bred line of \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium vulgare\u003c\/em\u003e - the same bulletproof species behind our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/magic-potion-isopods\"\u003eMagic Potion isopods\u003c\/a\u003e - developed for a rich orange-to-red body colour, with many individuals keeping the yellow and gold flecking of the wild type. The result is a warm amber isopod that stands out against dark substrate and leaf litter, backed by the easiest care requirements in the hobby.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eA Glimpse\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eOrigin:\u003c\/strong\u003e Spain (captive bred)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eScientific Name:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium vulgare\u003c\/em\u003e 'Orange Vigor'\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMaintenance Required:\u003c\/strong\u003e Easy\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAverage Size:\u003c\/strong\u003e Up to 18 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eRarity:\u003c\/strong\u003e Very rare in the UK hobby\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTemperature:\u003c\/strong\u003e 18-28°C\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHumidity:\u003c\/strong\u003e Moisture gradient, damp end around 75-80%\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eVentilation:\u003c\/strong\u003e Medium-High\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eFavourite Foods:\u003c\/strong\u003e Decaying leaf litter, rotting white wood, vegetables\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSupplements:\u003c\/strong\u003e Cuttlebone or limestone for calcium, occasional protein\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eOrange Vigor Isopods: Introduction\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eArmadillidium vulgare\u003c\/em\u003e is the classic pill bug - the species most of us grew up finding under stones and plant pots, and one of the few isopods that can roll into a completely sealed ball when disturbed. Orange Vigor takes that familiar, near-indestructible animal and dresses it in shades from soft amber through to deep orange-red. Colour intensity varies across a colony, and watching the range develop as generations come through is part of the appeal - much like our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/jelly-bean-isopods\"\u003eJelly Bean isopods\u003c\/a\u003e, another vulgare line where no two individuals look quite the same.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDespite the colour, these are still vulgare at heart: hardy, adaptable, and forgiving of the mistakes every new keeper makes. If you're choosing your first colony, this morph sits comfortably alongside Magic Potion as one of the best starting points we sell.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eAppearance\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdults reach around 18 mm with the deep, domed body shape typical of the genus. The base colour ranges from bright orange to a darker brick-red, and most individuals carry pale yellow flecking along each body segment - a trait inherited from the wild type that gives them a gold-dusted look under good lighting. Like all \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/em\u003e, they conglobate fully, rolling into a tight, gapless ball when they feel threatened.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne thing worth knowing: their exoskeleton is noticeably harder than softer-bodied species, so while young ones make an occasional treat for larger reptiles and amphibians, they're not my first recommendation as a feeder colony. They're kept for their looks.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eHousing and Care\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn my experience, vulgare morphs are among the most forgiving isopods you can keep, and Orange Vigor is no exception. They come from Mediterranean stock and prefer a moisture gradient over uniformly wet conditions - keep one end of the enclosure damp with sphagnum moss and let the rest stay drier. Good airflow matters more than most guides suggest; I run large vents on every tub, and it's one of the reasons colonies stay healthy through warm spells.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI start all my colonies at 20 or more individuals rather than the 5-10 often recommended - a bigger starting group establishes faster and breeds sooner. A deeper layer of nutritious substrate topped with plenty of leaf litter and bark gives them everything they need day to day. They'll happily live at normal UK room temperatures, with breeding picking up noticeably at the warmer end of their range.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThey pair well with springtails in bioactive setups, though like most \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/em\u003e they have a reputation for nibbling live plants and moss, so factor that in if you're adding them to a planted vivarium.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eDiet\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe bulk of their diet should come from their environment - decaying leaf litter and rotting white wood. On top of that, I feed a wide variety across our accessories range: vegetables, dried leaves, and a regular calcium source such as cuttlebone, which is essential for that thick armour. A varied diet drives breeding, and steady breeding is the clearest sign of a settled, healthy colony. Everything you need is in our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/accessories\"\u003edrygoods and accessories collection\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eBreeding\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGiven warmth, calcium, and a varied diet, Orange Vigor breed reliably. Females carry their young in a brood pouch and release fully formed mancae, which are miniature, paler versions of the adults that develop their colour as they grow and moult. Expect steady rather than explosive growth compared with some faster vulgare lines - which suits most keepers, as the colony builds without ever getting out of hand.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eWho Are They For?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOrange Vigor suits complete beginners looking for a colourful, low-maintenance first colony, and collectors of \u003cem\u003eArmadillidium\u003c\/em\u003e morphs who want something rarely seen in the UK. If you like the genus and want to compare, have a look at our \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/products\/zebra-isopods\"\u003eZebra isopods\u003c\/a\u003e or browse the full \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/armadillidium-isopods\"\u003eArmadillidium collection\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery colony ships in our double-walled boxes with sphagnum moss, ventilated deli tubs, and a live arrival guarantee - and after more than 23 years keeping exotic animals, I only sell animals from colonies that are thriving here first.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"5","offer_id":57667836674430,"sku":null,"price":7.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"10","offer_id":57667836707198,"sku":null,"price":12.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"20","offer_id":57667836739966,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/armadillidium-vulgare-orange-vigor-isopods-8322166.jpg?v=1783713616"}],"url":"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/beginner-isopods-for-sale.oembed","provider":"PostPods","version":"1.0","type":"link"}