When you want to take care of an isopod, these creatures are the best pets for beginners. It is because they are small crustacean insects that are fun to watch where you can add a sustainable and low maintenance ecosystem. Whether you are starting or adding them to your collection of exotic pets, isopods are easy ones to care for and need less attention. But before you get any isopods for sale, you must know about their diet, habitat needs, and general maintenance. Knowing their requirements and behaviors will ensure you are giving your isopods healthy and thriving habits for years in your care. Whether you are keeping them as pets or using them in your garden, you will find these creatures fun and rewarding.
Hydration and diet
Isopods are detritivores that feed on decaying plant material, making their diet easy to manage. You can give them lots of organic matter like wood, dead leaves, and vegetables rich in calcium, such as cuttlebone, to support their exoskeleton development. Hydration is also important, given through the moist substrate, but you can set a shallow water dish or mist the enclosure to manage the right humidity level. You can add occasional treats like commercial isopod food or fruits to expand their diet, ensuring they get the proper nutrients. When you know their feeding behaviors, you can have an idea about their health, and active foraging is a good sign of healthy isopods.
Enclosure
You can keep isopods in two ways before being kept as a clean up crew for your reptile enclosure. The second way to keep an isopod is in their enclosure. You can set up a glass terrarium or a plastic container, but it will depend on the colony’s size. The substrate is also important for their habitat, where you can mix it with coco coir, organic soil, and decomposing leaves that have a depth of two to four inches to allow them to burrow and get moisture. You must maintain the substrate’s moisture to copy a damp forest floor without waterlogging. Add bark, moss, and rocks to copy the natural hiding spots. You must give the isopods a balance of shaded areas, and access to moisture is important as it helps lessen the need for direct lighting or UVB.
Handling
Isopods are not usually handled because of their habitat and size but can be interacted with when important. Excessive handling can even cause them stress, so it is best that you limit any direct contact. You scoop or soft brush them to avoid harm when handling them. When you observe their natural behaviors, it is fun and less stressful for these creatures. Making a care guide for isopods focuses on simplicity but the importance of copying their natural environment. You can ensure their tiny companions can thrive in captivity when you understand their needs, from the enclosure setup to their diet and the fewer handling requirements.
Breeding
Some Isopod species are hard to reproduce in captivity or only breed with small amounts of offspring. When the species is hard to reproduce or kept as pets or rare species to add to an isopod collection, it is best for bioactive enclosures that house different vertebrates that must be mature and prolific at a young age. These isopods can become a snack for any bigger reptile or amphibian, so keeping a steady population is essential.
When you keep isopods as pets, you will benefit from their decomposition processes and function as natural waste recyclers. Since they don’t need more maintenance, isopods are unique and the best choice for those who want to lessen their environmental footprint.