{"title":"Ignamba Isopods For Sale UK","description":"\u003ch1\u003eIgnamba Isopods For Sale\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIgnamba is a small genus of African terrestrial isopods that's rare in the UK hobby. Our current stock comes from Nigeria - the \u003cem\u003eIgnamba sp.\u003c\/em\u003e Nigeria, an as-yet undescribed species at the species level (hence the \"sp.\" suffix in the product name), which is typical of wild-caught African isopods, where formal taxonomic work is still ongoing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat makes Ignamba interesting is that it represents one of the lesser-known corners of isopod diversity. African isopod species are underrepresented in the European hobby compared to their American and Asian counterparts, so working with Ignamba is an opportunity to keep something most UK keepers won't have experience with. Care information is still developing as the hobby learns what works best for these species.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHusbandry is more demanding than common UK natives - these tropical African species want consistently warm, humid setups (22-26°C, 75%+ humidity), well-ventilated enclosures with good substrate depth, and patience while they establish. Best suited to experienced keepers who can manage tropical conditions reliably. Browse our \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/other-species\"\u003eother isopod genera collection\u003c\/a\u003e for related uncommon species, or our \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/new-arrivals\"\u003enew arrivals collection\u003c\/a\u003e for the latest additions to our range.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"ignamba-sp-nigeria-isopods","title":"Ignamba sp. Nigeria Isopods for Sale","description":"\u003cp\u003eAlmost nobody else keeps this animal. We have looked across the UK, Europe and the US and found only a handful of North American mentions: one seller and one private keeper using the same name and the same country, and a hobby database entry that files the animal as Mesarmadillo sp. 'Nigeria'. Worth stating up front, because the fact cuts both ways: you will find almost no second opinion on anything below, and very few other places to get the animal.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOur supplier gave the locality as Nigeria and we have kept it. But we owe you the awkward part, which is that the genus and the country do not match up in the scientific record. \u003cem\u003eIgnamba\u003c\/em\u003e was erected by Budde-Lund in 1910 on material from the Swedish expedition to Kilimanjaro. Five species have been described in it: two from Tanzania, three from Malawi. Every occurrence record in the global databases is a Kilimanjaro museum specimen. There is nothing from Nigeria, and nothing from West Africa at all - that is around four thousand kilometres and a different biogeographic region away.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSo one of three things is true. The animal is not \u003cem\u003eIgnamba\u003c\/em\u003e; or it is not from Nigeria; or it is a genuine range extension nobody has written up. Which one, we do not know, and we decline to pick whichever of the three flatters us most.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThree things on our previous version of this page were also wrong, and we would rather list them than quietly swap them out. It said the name was probably a corruption of \u003cem\u003eNiambia\u003c\/em\u003e, a different genus in a different family. It sold the animals as captive-bred stock from European breeders. And it stated that they do not roll. The genus \u003cem\u003eIgnamba\u003c\/em\u003e is real and sits in Eubelidae; we now treat these as wild-origin; and on rolling, see below.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat it is, as far as anyone knows\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFamily Eubelidae, which is a real and useful thing to know rather than a formality. The ability to roll into a ball is one of the formal diagnostic characters of that family, alongside the uropod structure and the arched groove on the first coxal plates. So this is a rolling isopod by family membership. We say it that way deliberately: no published source describes conglobation in this genus specifically, and none describes this animal at all.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNo size has been published for this animal, and no description of its appearance exists anywhere. Our previous version of this page printed 10 to 18mm and a lifespan of one and a half to two and a half years. Neither had a source and both are withdrawn.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe family itself is mostly tropical African, with outliers in south-eastern Asia and on the Arabian Peninsula, so a eubelid in West Africa would raise nobody's eyebrows. It is \u003cem\u003eIgnamba\u003c\/em\u003e specifically that has never been recorded there.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eOur shelf settings\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWarm and humid, 24 to 28°C - though we should say we run them warm because the family is mostly lowland tropical, and if the Kilimanjaro and Malawi records reflect where the genus actually lives then cooler may suit them better. Nobody knows. What follows is what we do, not what is right.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe settings: with a substrate that drains instead of sitting wet. Around 60 to 85% humidity across a gradient, deep leaf litter, cork bark and sphagnum in one corner, moderate airflow so the air never sits still. Calcium permanently available through \u003ca href=\"\/products\/cuttlebone-100g\"\u003ecuttlebone\u003c\/a\u003e or oyster shell, and protein occasionally.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIf you keep tropical isopods already you will recognise the shape of it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOne consequence of being one of very few sources: if the culture crashes for you, there may be nobody else to replace it from. Buy accordingly, and buy more than you think you need.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eProvenance\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNo captive-bred claim here. An African isopod with no hobby footprint at all is much more likely to be a wild-caught animal, or one generation on from it, than a settled culture - and we would sooner undersell the animal than evidence-free overclaim it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBecause we treat this as a wild-origin animal, packing gets extra attention: a punched tub, moss kept damp without being wet, and a two-ply box. Sending happens Monday to Thursday. We put 20% over your count in the pot, and guarantee the animals arrive alive.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"PostPods","offers":[{"title":"5","offer_id":55873478459774,"sku":null,"price":10.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"10","offer_id":55873478394238,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"20","offer_id":55873478427006,"sku":null,"price":37.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/0707\/2294\/files\/ignamba-sp-nigeria-isopods-8807376.jpg?v=1771538655"}],"url":"https:\/\/postpods.co.uk\/collections\/ignamba-isopods.oembed","provider":"PostPods","version":"1.0","type":"link"}