Cubaris sp. 'Crazy Horse' Isopods

The first thing anyone notices about the Crazy Horse is the coat. Cubaris sp. 'Crazy Horse' is usually dark slate-grey at the head and tail with white to cream across the middle, and the balance of dark and pale falls differently on every animal, so no two in a tub look quite the same. The one care sheet that explains the trade name says it is for the way they dash about; nobody we found links it to a horse's markings.

Underneath that striking pattern sits a classic Cubaris. This is a premium species with a rounded body, and like other Cubaris it can roll into a tight ball when disturbed, though one seller describes it as a fast runner. A settled colony shows the full spread of markings side by side, from mostly grey individuals to mostly pale ones. At 12 to 15 mm, the figure on our care panel and the only one we found, from a single seller, they are a good size to appreciate that detail.

'Crazy Horse' is a step up from the hardy Mediterranean woodlice, though not a difficult animal once you understand what a premium Cubaris wants. The main thing is warmth. They are sold as Thai animals, and they like it around 22 to 26°C. A British home sits below that range through the colder months and at best near the bottom of it in summer, so a low-wattage heat mat or heat cable on the side of the tub, on a thermostat and never underneath, is needed through the colder months at least.

Alongside that warmth they want steady humidity with a gradient rather than a uniformly wet box. I keep one end damp, at around 80 per cent, under sphagnum moss, and let the far end sit drier so the animals can choose. A gentle flow of air matters just as much, holes on opposite sides so air stays fresh rather than stagnant. Moist, not wet, is the phrase to hold onto: substrate like a wrung-out sponge, never waterlogged. Get the balance of damp, air and warmth right and they are an undemanding animal to live with.

Give them a deep substrate, seven to ten centimetres, so they can burrow and the microclimate stays stable. Because woodlice build a calcium carbonate cuticle, work plenty of calcium through it, crushed limestone or oyster shell, along with some flake soil for structure and nutrition and a good layer of white rotten hardwood. On top I add a thick covering of leaf litter, and the magnolia leaf litter is a favourite here and lasts well. A springtail culture tucked in from the start keeps mould in check while the colony finds its feet. Most of their diet comes from that decaying wood and leaf litter, with the odd piece of vegetable, a little fish flake or dried shrimp for protein, and cuttlebone always to hand for the calcium a breeding colony gets through.

The care sheet that explains the name also calls them prolific, with slow to moderate growth. Cubaris settle at their own pace, and a Crazy Horse colony rewards patience more than fuss, so leave them largely undisturbed, keep the calcium and warmth constant, and let numbers build over months. If you are putting together a premium Cubaris shelf, they sit well next to our Rubber Ducky and Lemon Blue, slate-grey and white against the colour those two bring; the Panda King is the easier Cubaris to start with. Our Crazy Horse isopod care guide covers the name, how it differs from Cappuccino and the care in more depth.

Every order is captive-bred here in the UK, 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 as standard.