Cherry Blossom Isopods (Cubaris sp.)

In five years of keeping isopods - and more than two decades keeping reptiles and other exotics before that - the Cherry Blossom is one of the few species that still stops me every time I open the enclosure. Soft pastel-pink bodies with pale cream segmentation really do resemble cherry blossom petals in good light, and the colour is unlike anything else in the hobby - even keepers who know the Rubber Ducky, Panda King and Magic Potion lines find it stands apart. This is a genuinely rare, high-end Cubaris, and every one we send is captive-bred here in the UK.

Introduction

The Cherry Blossom is Cubaris sp. "Cherry Blossom", a selectively-bred colour line isolated in Japan from Cubaris sp. "Red Pak Chong" stock. That makes it a sister line to the standard Red Pak Chong and a more distant relative of the other Thai-origin Cubaris such as Rubber Ducky and Panda King. It represents a specific, established lineage rather than a wild-collected species, which matters both for consistency and for sourcing, given the pressure wild collection places on Southeast Asian cave populations. For a collector building a premium Cubaris collection, this is one of the genuinely irreplaceable species rather than a minor variant of something more common.

Appearance

The colour is the whole story. Cherry Blossoms carry a soft pastel-pink body broken by paler, cream-coloured segmentation, giving them that unmistakable falling-petal look. Against dark substrate the effect is striking, and unlike many premium Cubaris they are relatively surface-active - naturally quiet rather than truly shy, they grow more visible as a colony settles, with real movement in the evenings and after misting. Like all Cubaris they conglobate, rolling into a neat ball when disturbed.

Care

Cherry Blossoms want classic cave-Cubaris conditions, and they are less forgiving of mistakes than the hardier species, so stability is everything - fluctuating heat or humidity stresses them disproportionately. Aim for around 22-25°C and high humidity of roughly 70-85%, and as a still-air cave species they prefer low ventilation that holds that humidity rather than the strong cross-airflow Mediterranean isopods need. 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 feeds nothing. A permanent calcium source - cuttlebone or crushed limestone - is essential for healthy moulting in a cave species. Our substrate guide, calcium guide and complete Cubaris care guide cover the detail, and a springtail culture alongside them keeps mould in check.

Diet

Cherry Blossoms are detritivores, and 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 dried shrimp, and clear away uneaten fresh food promptly so it does not mould in the humid, low-ventilation enclosure. Foods rich in natural pigment, like pumpkin and carrot, are a nice addition for a colour-morph species.

Breeding

Set your expectations here: Cherry Blossoms are slow. Like most premium Cubaris they establish gradually and produce limited numbers, so this is a long-term project rather than a route to a fast, saleable colony. Give a group stable, warm, humid, undisturbed conditions with food and calcium always available, be patient through the early months, and let them settle at their own pace - the reward is a rare, beautiful colony you will not find easily anywhere else.

Who is this for?

The Cherry Blossom is a species for the dedicated. It suits the collector after a genuinely rare, visually distinctive Cubaris, the display keeper who values a more surface-active premium species, and the long-term project keeper comfortable with slow establishment and limited offspring. It is not a beginner isopod - start with an Armadillidium or a hardy Porcellio line first - and it is not for anyone wanting fast colony growth, offspring to sell or value pricing, nor for a setup that cannot hold humidity and temperature steady. Explore the rest of the genus in our Cubaris collection, including the ever-popular Rubber Ducky and Panda King.

Every 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.