Below we've listed everything you'll need as well as 6 easy steps to start your own thriving isopod colony. You can also find a video of us setting up an enclosure that you can watch. 

 

If you'd like to take a look at our starter kits, you can find them 

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What you’ll need:

 

• The tank

• Sphagnum moss (this will most likely come dry)

• Isopod soil

• Leaf litter

• White rot wood

• Cork bark

• A source of calcium (tufa rock, cuttlefish etc)

• A food dish (We like to use two, one for wet food like fruit and veg and one for dry food like fish food or other protein sources)

• Optional - Lotus pods and other natual enrichment.

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How to set up your enclosure:

 

 

1. Fill your tank halfway with isopod friendly soil. Roughly even it out and make a dip at one end.

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2. Wet your sphagnum moss then squeeze out the excess water so it’s wet but doesn’t drip.

 

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​3. Put the moss into the gap you made in your soil at one end. (Approximately 1/3 of the tank).

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4. Sprinkle a generous handful of leaf litter over the soil, putting slightly more at the end opposite the moss. (This will be your dryer end of the tank)

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5. Add in your rot wood, cork bark and calcium source. (There’s no set place to put things, this is about creating little dens for your isopods to explore and hide in)

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6. Place a feeding dish towards the dryer end of tank. (You’ll want to start by only offering small amounts of food at a time and removing everything that isn’t eaten after a few days. Your isopods may need a little while to settle in before they start eating much so please don’t worry if they don’t appear to be eating to begin with. They will have plenty of food among the soil and may prefer that at the start until they feel braver).

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Your set up is now ready for your Isopods. 😊