Great guide Mike, for anybody reading this it is also important to provide them with a source of Calcium, which all Isopod species need to grow and maintain their exoskeleton.
Isopods needs cleaner crews too, not only by themselves.. So for my setup, i would just add a bunch of springtails in there as well to prevent fungus and mold outbreaks, while the Isopods themselves aim for the solids.. One thing I've noticed about the playing possum very shy dwarf white Isopods by experience is that they tend to cover more ground foraging for food when springtails are around.. They will not more around much when springtails are not around. I do put springtails in all of my Isopod cultures to aid in biogrowth more efficiently btw..
My giant oranges get whatever veg my GALS get (it's q bio active tank), prawn and shrimp heads/shells (raw), including the brains which they eat, they will eat every part of a prawn/shrimp, soaked cat biscuits (perina one, coz GALS love those), calcium powder deposited in all the little crevices of their cork log (sometimes needs replenishing daily), cuttlefish broken up near the areas they live (in a 200l vintage juwel), GALS eggs (I can't help that, I've tried saving some but by the time I've noticed they've already ate them, snail eggs are big favourite of the little isopods, defrosted bloodworm, they'll also eat the snails soaked oats/porridge too & woodchip under the cork log that rots away & is eaten and it's needed replenishing 3 times in 7 months, keep woodchips far out the way of snails but mopani wood is safe for snails to munch on. If insufficient calcium is provided they will attack others and kill them I've noticed, which is why I started depositing the calcium powder in many more places, they isopods are literally everywhere in there. They'll eat their dead anyway but they will also attack if in need on calcium. And they're constantly growing so need a lot of it, they'll eat they're molts as well, and I thinks it's adorable when they carry bits of food back home. Some burrow, others use the moapi and burrow in the coco noire under that and many more live within and under the cork log and then there's another group who live under the aspen, and another group to are in buried egg cartons (non bleached as they'll eat that too).
@@MikeTytula I've got 30 years experience with isopods (any bug or mammals tbf), I just shared some experience over the last several months with one species lol 😆 I was born and raised in a private zoo, which had everything. My rubber duckies are a different kettle of fish, they're a lot more delicate and I have to remove the prawn brains before they'll have a nibble. Just so u know, not all cardboard is safe, if the cardboard u use has a gap between two pieces and it looks like it's fused, then it is and they fuse it with glue. Might I recommend unbleached egg cartons or use the germination ones (plant growers put germinated seeds in these then pots and it'll break down as it's roots grow through it, forgot their proper name), cardboard really isn't recommend because the factories that make them use other chemical and hazardous materials, egg carton production does not use any chemicals or hazardous material in their factories, they can't, because food for human consumption (eggs) will be sat in them. Cardboard also has a lot a glue within in. Brown paper is fine. Just not cardboard. U should of read this in a book tho tbf. Good luck with ur channel ♡
@@gemsaint1485 Cheers! We dont have any cultures still running, they are only in a bunch of our tanks. I appreciate the feedback though. Being raise in a private zoo sounds awesome!
You’re making this much harder than it needs to be. 😂 I go outside and fill a plastic tub with their natural substrate add some rotting wood. Then I throw my composite in it. I check for anything that may mold and remove it.
Great vid once again Mike, will defiantly have a go at breeding Isopods. I've been wanting to grow orchids for a bit and I didn't know if you can take cuttings if so could you, or any one who sees this and knows, say how and where thanks a lot and keep up the good videos
+Mike Tytula ask if you can get a species of sand boa and tell them it will never try to get out because it's an ambush predator and also it buries so they'll never see it
I'm getting a baby beardie on June 4!!!😁😄😁😄It would mean soooo much to me if you could maybe do a video of needed dragon care and tank setup for may madness.Thank you and like if you have a reptile🐍🦂🐢🐛🐊☘🌳🌿🌱🍀🍃
im kind of new to these pillbugs but how do you find them I live in germany and the freezing tempatures are hard all I find a slugs and worms a centipedes
oh the joke that could be made about not needing to have a shaved..... cat :D I love your cat btw, he reminds me of one I used to have that was a stray I taught to trust humans.. He was WAY bigger though, his head couldn't even fit in my hand and his feet were huge.. unfortunately someone hit him with a baseball bat or something and shattered one of his hind thighs and animal control had to take him because we couldn't afford to take him to the vet to get him fixed...
I have a couple cultures for my bearded dragon dawrf white, powdered blue, Spanish orange, and giant canyon, also pink springtails. They all were cultured and transported to the tanks every 3 months. The ones that dont get picked off breeds in the terrarium just fine. Just give them a few seed pods and a half burried cork tube and they will make themselves at home very quickly
+ChelseaGunners They tend to balance out and inhabit the more moist areas, it rarely becomes a population concern. If it did they are totally harmless, very nutritious (packed with calcium) and easily harvested and removed by just tapping the rock or bark they gather together on inside an extra tub or similar.
Generally speaking no, depending on the species of isopod and lizard of course. Even still, they wont ever become a danger if never eaten. Easy to control numbers due to how they group together in predictable areas.
They will tend to avoid doing things like that if conditions are correct within the viv, either way they dessicate (dry out) and die quickly without the moisture they need to breath. They could never infest the average house.
+Californian Reptile (C_Reptiles) That will depend on where they are from, natural woodland yes, if from your garden, wait for the babies to be safe, isopods can accumulate high levels of metals from wild diets in urban areas.
Great guide Mike, for anybody reading this it is also important to provide them with a source of Calcium, which all Isopod species need to grow and maintain their exoskeleton.
I knew I was missing something! Whoops!
pin this
what should i add for calcium?
Darth Crusadus I’m late whoops and you’ve probably found it by now but I’m going to use almonds and kale 🤷🏻♀️
Aw man I went out and got a shaved cat before you said I don't need it!
Christywoowoo ARE YOU STILL ALIIIIIIIIIIVE?!!!!!!?????!
Christywoowoo what the fuck
When you were pouring the water into the containers your cats face was hilarious.
hahah it was!!!
Isopods needs cleaner crews too, not only by themselves.. So for my setup, i would just add a bunch of springtails in there as well to prevent fungus and mold outbreaks, while the Isopods themselves aim for the solids.. One thing I've noticed about the playing possum very shy dwarf white Isopods by experience is that they tend to cover more ground foraging for food when springtails are around.. They will not more around much when springtails are not around. I do put springtails in all of my Isopod cultures to aid in biogrowth more efficiently btw..
That is a solid tip! Thanks! :)
Wish we had reptile expos over here it would make life so much easier btw love your vids keep up the amazing work
Thanks man! Where are you???
+Mike Tytula I'm from England
Space BaconGaming I'm sure you do!
hey man great vid just wanted to know if I could do a bio active setup for a crestie and add a waterfall to it
Who doesn't like a shaved cat? lol 1:34
I'm gonna try keeping them! Thanks for the help!
Rember when I asked you about is it ok to take my chameleon out to clean his cage it went perfect got hissed at but it was smoother than I thought
good!
My giant oranges get whatever veg my GALS get (it's q bio active tank), prawn and shrimp heads/shells (raw), including the brains which they eat, they will eat every part of a prawn/shrimp, soaked cat biscuits (perina one, coz GALS love those), calcium powder deposited in all the little crevices of their cork log (sometimes needs replenishing daily), cuttlefish broken up near the areas they live (in a 200l vintage juwel), GALS eggs (I can't help that, I've tried saving some but by the time I've noticed they've already ate them, snail eggs are big favourite of the little isopods, defrosted bloodworm, they'll also eat the snails soaked oats/porridge too & woodchip under the cork log that rots away & is eaten and it's needed replenishing 3 times in 7 months, keep woodchips far out the way of snails but mopani wood is safe for snails to munch on. If insufficient calcium is provided they will attack others and kill them I've noticed, which is why I started depositing the calcium powder in many more places, they isopods are literally everywhere in there. They'll eat their dead anyway but they will also attack if in need on calcium. And they're constantly growing so need a lot of it, they'll eat they're molts as well, and I thinks it's adorable when they carry bits of food back home.
Some burrow, others use the moapi and burrow in the coco noire under that and many more live within and under the cork log and then there's another group who live under the aspen, and another group to are in buried egg cartons (non bleached as they'll eat that too).
Thats a ton of great information! Thanks for sharing your process! I think the keeping of isopods has come a long way in the past few years :)
@@MikeTytula
I've got 30 years experience with isopods (any bug or mammals tbf), I just shared some experience over the last several months with one species lol 😆 I was born and raised in a private zoo, which had everything. My rubber duckies are a different kettle of fish, they're a lot more delicate and I have to remove the prawn brains before they'll have a nibble.
Just so u know, not all cardboard is safe, if the cardboard u use has a gap between two pieces and it looks like it's fused, then it is and they fuse it with glue. Might I recommend unbleached egg cartons or use the germination ones (plant growers put germinated seeds in these then pots and it'll break down as it's roots grow through it, forgot their proper name), cardboard really isn't recommend because the factories that make them use other chemical and hazardous materials, egg carton production does not use any chemicals or hazardous material in their factories, they can't, because food for human consumption (eggs) will be sat in them. Cardboard also has a lot a glue within in. Brown paper is fine. Just not cardboard. U should of read this in a book tho tbf.
Good luck with ur channel ♡
@@gemsaint1485 Cheers! We dont have any cultures still running, they are only in a bunch of our tanks. I appreciate the feedback though. Being raise in a private zoo sounds awesome!
This was uploaded on my birthday! Thx Mike!
happy birthday!
+Mike Tytula Thank you man!
delicious wild food too, even for humans if you get enough, protein etc for sure. Good supplement.
Kraller sure, they taste great.
good vid bro I like your cats eyes
You’re making this much harder than it needs to be. 😂 I go outside and fill a plastic tub with their natural substrate add some rotting wood. Then I throw my composite in it. I check for anything that may mold and remove it.
Fair enough, just no attempt at any sanitary measures scares me.
Great vid once again Mike, will defiantly have a go at breeding Isopods. I've been wanting to grow orchids for a bit and I didn't know if you can take cuttings if so could you, or any one who sees this and knows, say how and where thanks a lot and keep up the good videos
Depends on the orchid!
Great video Mike :) i'll be using custodians in my bio leo setups when i make them.
+Jake's Reptiles bioactiveherps.co.uk/ Go to place for us in the UK. Tarron is a super helpful guy.
Nice sense of community!
For sure bro !
+Shane Ye Shane I've been speaking to him for a while and I've asked him a load of questions which he doesn't fail to answer :)
Awesome mate, same here actually haha !
Could I keep isopods on the substrate I find them
Would love to see your daily maintenance routine :) 'A day in the life of Mike'
It's coming this weekend!
Is there any need to put more Isopods and springtails in a bioactive setup over time or will they self sustain and breed? Btw May Madness is sweeet!
+charlie ince That will depend on conditions and levels of predation, you will need to monitor it for a couple of months.
Shane pretty much nailed it!
+Mike Tytula okay, thanks guys :)
I could get used to these everyday videos !!
Who couldn't!!
haha I wish I could continue everyday!!
Mike Tytula are these safe for Chinese water dragons cause I'll do it with mine
Mikey Gifford They are safe
Great informational video! I was wondering if there is anything that Rantiomeya's can eat aside from fly larva?
Fruit flies!
Mike Tytula anything else? crickets or something. if not, how much are the average container of larva?
Albino Tortoise Springtails, bean bettles and depends where you are
Mike Tytula Ah ok, thanks as always
High quality fish food? They will eat anything, why waste money on high quality fish food?
what kind of isopods are best as tank janitors but safe enough to be eaten by a crested gecko
would adult lepoards and african fat tailed geckos eat them?
You could feed them I suppose
can you grow isopods and springtails together? the springtails could eat the mold of the food that the isopods couldnt keeping it clean, or?
It can happen yes, but honestly the springtails can out compete the isopods over time. So I recommend keeping them separate
Can u do this with the isopod outside
Yes, there is no real reason to buy isopods unless you just really want a certain kind ie. Dalmatian or zebra or whatever :)
Thanks for the great video :)
Thanks for watching!
some cats like water
If you're lucky. Sometimes you can get High Yellow individuals
Oh that sounds awesome
if i add these in a juvenile water monitors cage, with they eat the S**T so i wont have to clean it up?
yes
What is the schedule when you come out of May madness
I think he uploads whenever he can and wants
Ya there is no real schedule probably 2-3 times a week
+Mike Tytula cool
Damn man your lucky, starting up my own little reptile collection myself still a bummer you can't get a snake tho
+Mike Tytula ask if you can get a species of sand boa and tell them it will never try to get out because it's an ambush predator and also it buries so they'll never see it
I have no interest in a sandboa lol
I'm getting a baby beardie on June 4!!!😁😄😁😄It would mean soooo much to me if you could maybe do a video of needed dragon care and tank setup for may madness.Thank you and like if you have a reptile🐍🦂🐢🐛🐊☘🌳🌿🌱🍀🍃
I don't own one so I won't! Sorry bud!
you earned a sub
Thanks
im kind of new to these pillbugs but how do you find them I live in germany and the freezing tempatures are hard all I find a slugs and worms a centipedes
You would have to order them.
oh the joke that could be made about not needing to have a shaved..... cat :D I love your cat btw, he reminds me of one I used to have that was a stray I taught to trust humans.. He was WAY bigger though, his head couldn't even fit in my hand and his feet were huge.. unfortunately someone hit him with a baseball bat or something and shattered one of his hind thighs and animal control had to take him because we couldn't afford to take him to the vet to get him fixed...
That is a terrible story :/ sorry to hear man
could I breed these for bearded dragons?
They don't really produce fast enough
ok. but I was gonna use them as a treat once and a while. would they be good for them? I wouldn't need a lot for treats.
Outdoors And Botanical They would be fine ya
ok Great thanks!
I have a couple cultures for my bearded dragon dawrf white, powdered blue, Spanish orange, and giant canyon, also pink springtails. They all were cultured and transported to the tanks every 3 months. The ones that dont get picked off breeds in the terrarium just fine. Just give them a few seed pods and a half burried cork tube and they will make themselves at home very quickly
yo i have that blanket thats crazy ive never seen anyone else with it(ik im way off topic)
The spider man blanket? haha
@@MikeTytula yes
Hell ya haha
@@MikeTytula if u dont have that blanket anymore I cry
Mike, my isopod environment (first try) now has ants. Any advice?
I would restart the culture. I'm not really sure how to get rid of them without killing the isopods
Are these safe FOR every dart frog / lizzard?
+Csgo Latte 100% safe, harmless, helpful creatures.
They have no poison and will not bite your animals pure prey and helpers no worry
Thanks :D
For a beginner your pretty good
haha what's that mean??
Could I just use top soil? Or just it be coconut core?
I'd recommend both.
How often do you have to add Isopods to your Dart Frog tanks?
I think he puts them in every dart frog tank very good cleaners no need to clean it up
Depends on if they are breeding or not?
Can you use isopods in a mangrove monitors cage
Ya you should be able too!
wouldn't they end up overpopulating in a big lizards tank as they won't eat them
+ChelseaGunners They tend to balance out and inhabit the more moist areas, it rarely becomes a population concern. If it did they are totally harmless, very nutritious (packed with calcium) and easily harvested and removed by just tapping the rock or bark they gather together on inside an extra tub or similar.
+Shane yes but big lizards dont eat them do they
Generally speaking no, depending on the species of isopod and lizard of course. Even still, they wont ever become a danger if never eaten. Easy to control numbers due to how they group together in predictable areas.
+Shane ye I guess i was just wondering as if they overpopulated theyre small enough to climb through the glass out of the viv
They will tend to avoid doing things like that if conditions are correct within the viv, either way they dessicate (dry out) and die quickly without the moisture they need to breath.
They could never infest the average house.
im going on a vacation and can not go on a reptile expo on saturday and im so sad
:(
:(
I'm sorry there are aways others
Hopefully you got a chance
are they cool with centipedes?
I imagine centipede would eat these
what are they used for in the reptile hobby??
Feeders and clean up crew!
can you use cardboard from the toilet paper?
I don't use any cardboard anymore, but not because you want the corrugated cardboard
Mike Tytula ok thanks
Nice video!
can i do this with wild ones
You can!`
@@MikeTytula ok thanks i have a spotted salamander
Nice
Are these things like some snail species, meaning that the population over time will explode?
Justice Banken yes
aloa snakbar
Are wild isopods safe?
+Californian Reptile (C_Reptiles) That will depend on where they are from, natural woodland yes, if from your garden, wait for the babies to be safe, isopods can accumulate high levels of metals from wild diets in urban areas.
shit load of isopods in my house honestly lol
That's weird haha
isnt the purpose of isopods is to eat molds?
Springtails are the ones that eat the mould
Mike Tytula so what does isopods do?
Recycle the larger waste, and organic waste in the tank
Mike Tytula but can they be feed to a sling?
I thought they eat mold?
THe springtails do, the Isopods don't really
They eat cardboard?
They like to hide in the cardboard but they will slowly break it down over time.
does banana skin work?
Why the fuck are you doing that on your bed?
Why not?
i have like million isopods in my backyard
You might be unless you live in a tropical environment they will likely die in a vivarium
......they explode!?
second comment :D
you should talk slower
haha