Moo Cow Isopods For Sale

The Moo Cow isopods are one of the morphs of Porcellio Scaber and are beginner friendly isopods for enthusiasts who are new to the hobby. The white body with black freckled spots on their exoskeleton often gets confused with Porcellio laevis Dairy Cow species. Due to adaptability to various environmental conditions, these species are widely available.

Moo Cow Isopods: A Glimpse

●      Scientific Name: Porcellio Scaber "Moo Cow"

●      Common name: Common Rough Woodlouse

●      Origin: Europe

●      Size: 1.8 cm

●      Temperature: 17℃- 26℃

●      Rarity: Low

●      Humidity: 50% to 60%

●      Primary Diet: Rotten leaves, rotten hardwood, vegetable scrap

●      Supplements required: Calcium supplement or cuttlebone.

Moo Cow Isopods: A Glimpse

Moo Cow isopods are hardy and can tolerate extreme drought conditions. These creatures have much bolder white and black patches on their skin. These species, though they're similar to Porcellio laevis "Dairy Cow," these critters are more active and scurry around quickly. These species are native to Western and Central Europe, and they are now available worldwide due to their popularity. These species are conscious of the environment around their activity depending on the surroundings.

Moo Cow Isopods: Characteristic Features and Traits

●      These species have an oval body with a hard white carapace with black patches.

●      Has a granular texture to their exoskeleton and compound eyes.

●      Has two large antennas along with a small inner pair that is used to sense their surroundings.

●      They are one of the morphs of Porcellio Scaber isopods.

●      The calcium-to-protein ratio is 12:1, which is high compared to other insects.

●      These species are active and quick breeders. They multiply quickly; therefore, you need a larger enclosure.

●      These species are tolerant to drought, but it is ideal to keep a third of the enclosure dry and the rest of the enclosure mildly wet.

●      Females can produce around 45 to 90 fertilized eggs and are kept in a fluid-filled sac for around 40-50 days.

●      These isopods can reproduce after three months of their birth and have a life expectancy of 2 years.

●      To protect their exoskeleton from extreme dryness, also known as desiccation, they seek moisture in their environment.

●      Detritivores in nature seek nutrition from decaying plants, fungi, and bacteria that aid the decaying process.

●      These species move quickly and slowly depending on the environment, i.e., they tend to move faster in dry environments and slower in humid areas.

Moo Cow Isopods: Dietary Requirements

These species primarily get nutrition by consuming detritus, i.e., dead, and rotting matter. These species in the wild feed on rotting organic matter, fungus, and bacteria that consume rotten leaves and other matter. In an enclosure, provide a mix of food like veggies, greens, etc.

You can also include molting of invertebrates or reptiles, as well as fish and meat scraps for protein. Calcium is crucial for a stronger and healthier carapace; therefore, you can provide eggshells, limestone pieces, and cuttlebone. If not, adding calcium powder can be great as a substitute for the isopods.

These species are voracious eaters, but it is important to provide only the necessary amount of food in the enclosure. To prevent fruit flies, molds, and gnats, providing food that they can consume in a single session is ideal.

Porcellio Scaber Isopods: Morphs

The Porcellio Scaber "Moo Cow" is one of the many morphs that are commonly available worldwide. Other morphs of these species include:

●      Porcellio Scaber "Orange": They have a distinguished orange color on their exoskeleton.

●      Porcellio "Lava" Isopod: These are cool-looking morphs that have orangish red blotches on the black exoskeleton.

●      Porcellio Scaber "Calico": Bright orange, yellow coloring with smaller, barely visible black freckles.

●      Porcellio Ghost Isopods: Deep lilac to light purple colored species.

●      Porcellio Scaber "Dalmatian": Similar to moo cow isopods, except its spots are smaller and less visible.

●      Orange Koi Isopod: Their bright white and orange color combination resembles the fish of a similar name.

●      Piebald Variant: A recessive gene that has a black and white color combination on its exoskeleton.

Moo Cow Isopods: Basic Care

●      When providing an enclosure, make sure to set up a box which is larger than a typical shoebox sized enclosure. These species breed quickly once established and so it is ideal to provide a bigger enclosure.

●      If you like to show off your isopod collection with other enthusiasts, providing a glass enclosure with suitable ventilation will provide more visibility. You can admire their natural activities using such transparent enclosures. If not, a normal plastic container will work just fine.

●      These species love both tropical and temperate climate, therefore make sure to mimic that habitat into an artificial enclosure.

●      They prefer a well-ventilated enclosure and don't require a humid enclosure like other isopods.

●      If you are providing a self-made enclosure it is to ensure that you are making provision for cross ventilation by making enough holes in the enclosure.

●      For these clean up critters, provide substrate mix in the enclosure that has rotten leaves in the mix or provide a custom mix of coco peat, leaf litter, small amount of soil and moss to retain moisture.

●      Make sure to provide the substrate bedding for around 1-3 inches within the enclosure.

●      It has to be ensured that the substrate they keep inside the container should be damped up to about one third of the total portion.

●      While carrying out misting, the damp area and the wet area should be maintained separately. The areas should not be exchanged.

●      Moss is to be kept only in the damp areas to maintain the moisture content. These mosses are also a type of food for them thus serving dual purpose.

●      The enclosure should be periodically inspected and must ensure that the leaflets and other food items are present inside the container.

●      If the moisture content is higher, there can be increased mold growth, which is not good for your pets. To avoid this, you can add springtails, which prey on the mold and will help you to keep the area clean.

●      It is important to keep hiding areas inside the enclosure. Towards this you can coconut shell or bark of wood which will act as the perfect hiding space for them. You can also keep crates of eggs which also are equally good hide out areas for your pets.