# pill bugs/rolly pollies



## D_Hemptress (Dec 20, 2012)

ive been reading that some people use these as feeders. is this a good idea becasue those thing are beyond easy to find... does anyone else use these or have anything to say on the topic?


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## Danny. (Dec 20, 2012)

I've also heard of peeps feeding these but not sure if they're good feeders. As for finding them, they're everywhere in my backyard under bricks, leaf litter etc ...


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## D_Hemptress (Dec 20, 2012)

ya just lift up a rock and youve got like 50 of them, (and all different sizes) so im really hoping to get some good feed back on this thread. pills bugs would just be too easy


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## Malakyoma (Dec 20, 2012)

Yes my mantids love them. I try to keep it to a limit though since I'm trying to get a culture started. Isopods are a great source of food and they'll clean the tank for you too.


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## D_Hemptress (Dec 20, 2012)

they clean the tank? how so?


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## Malakyoma (Dec 20, 2012)

Any leftovers your mantis drops, any frass, any waste, they eat it.


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## D_Hemptress (Dec 20, 2012)

freaking nice!


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## garin33 (Dec 20, 2012)

Yes, they are good cleaners in roach colonies as well. Springtails too.

I've never tried feeding them to my mantids however. I assume you would probably have to hand them?


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## D_Hemptress (Dec 20, 2012)

right now i dont have any mantids but as soon i recieve the ones im ordering from paradoxica ill have to see if they will eat them and or if they even like them


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## garin33 (Dec 20, 2012)

That's the best way to find out because different species are more picky than others.

Some mantids will eat almost anything and others are like my kids, super picky!!


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## Malakyoma (Dec 20, 2012)

Yeah I have some mantids that love beetles but others will only take the worms. Individuals can be picky


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## Ranitomeya (Dec 21, 2012)

I would be worried about feeding ground-dwelling detrivores that you've collected from the wild. The soil can contain a great many pathogens and because terrestrial isopods tend to eat detritus and decaying or dead material, they have an increased likelihood of encountering pathogens that have the potential to be deadly to mantids. For example, if an isopod were to eat some parasite eggs and you fed the isopod to your mantids, your mantids may be parasitized if the parasite is one that has the ability to survive inside it. If you decide to use terrestrial isopods, I would suggest culturing your own and feeding off their offspring rather than using wild caught individuals.


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## Rick (Dec 21, 2012)

Not a normal food source since they remain hidden under litter. But if the mantis can eat them by all means use them. I would assume you would have to hand feed them or have a bare floor enclosure.


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## D_Hemptress (Dec 21, 2012)

ok thanks for the advise guys


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## kunturman (Jan 13, 2013)

*Just an observation from a previous experince: *

I do not recomend having _*Porcellio leavis*_ as cleaners for a mantid habitad, especially if they are numerous in your substrate.

If you mantid would venture to the ground during the evening,lights turned off, you might find a few remains of you mantid the next day. I keep them with Madagascars roaches, they will clean them out from mites and only eat those which are ill, dying, or dead.


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## BugLover (Jan 14, 2013)

I have heard that pill bugs aren't very nutritious because of their shells, but you could try them.


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## Golden State Vivs (Jan 14, 2013)

Isopods are high in calcium, and make an excellent feeder.


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## Malakyoma (Jan 14, 2013)

Speaking of isopods my cultures got babies in it :3 Cute little fellas.


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## glock34girl (Feb 12, 2013)

Hmmm.... could I place the rollie pollies in my meal worm farm to keep up with the frass? I have meal worms for my gliders but I have to refridgerate and give away a lot of mealies cause theres just too many and the frass drives me bonkers.


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## kunturman (Feb 12, 2013)

Mealworm's substrate is probably to dry for isopods.


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## glock34girl (Feb 12, 2013)

amamantodea said:


> Mealworm's substrate is probably to dry for isopods.


in the words of Chef Gordon Ramsay @(#&amp;*@ @ #$(@*#$!)! @ # ) *@$*$!)@(#*! lol I thought I was on to something.


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## Meadow98684 (Mar 2, 2013)

Haha I tried feeding a potato bug to my last mantis...it was hilarious because it was rolled into a ball and the mantis couldnt even chew through the shell so it go ditched. Wish I filmed it!


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