Porcellio scaber 'Rust' Isopods

Rust is the understated one in the Porcellio scaber 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.

Introduction

This is the Rust colour form of Porcellio scaber, 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, scaber, is Latin for "rough", after the bumpy shell that separates it from the smooth P. laevis species like Dairy Cow. The Rust sits naturally beside the other Porcellio scaber forms in our range.

Appearance

Adults 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 Porcellio, 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.

Care

This 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.

Diet

An 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 P. scaber 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 springtail culture completes the cleanup crew.

Breeding

Rust 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 isopod colour and morphs.

Who is this for?

Rust 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 Scaber Mix, the contrast Yin Yang and the fiery Lava. It is not the one to choose if you specifically want an isopod that rolls into a ball, or a rare exotic showpiece.

Every 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.