Isopods do not eat mold - experiment

I've been trying different critters for my paludarium with Eastern Newts. 

Newts feed on all kinds of insects - including isopods. 

Different types of isopods can be found where trees grow.

 I found 3 different types of isopods in local parks of New York City.

I believe this one is Oniscus Isopod. 

Well, I am not a hundred percent sure - correct me if I am wrong.

 Take a closer look at the Oniscus isopods.

 Oniscus have dots on the back, and some kind of a skirt :)

Here I have a half dozen adult isopods. 

That should be enough to start a new colony. 

I use 16oz food grade plastic containers for culturing all my isopods. 

Make a couple holes in the cover of the container for air circulation. 

Put some wilted leaves. 

I picked oak leaves at the same spot where I found isopods. 

Mist the leaves. 

Isopods love the bark of trees - that is where I find them most often.

 So, let's add a couple pieces of bark.

 Isopods like moisture. 

Mist the bottom sides of the bark where isopods will hide. 

Basically, we made the simplest terrarium. 

Now, let's move the isopods in.

 Ah, perfect! 

3 isopods of different age/size for you to see. 

And the rest goes in as well. 

Isopods always move away from the light. 

The largest Oniscus I got is slightly less than 2 cm long.

 Bark and leaves retain a lot of moisture.

 Cover the container. 

All set and ready on June 23rd, 2022. 

I check on my isopods once a week. 

Add food if necessary and mist the culture.

 Isopods like to snack on different vegetables. 

I give them a slice of whatever is available once a week to check if they like it.

 Isopods molt as they grow - here you can see the remains of the molt.

 Leave the old molt in the container for Isopods to eat. 

One month later on July 24th, I spotted tiny baby isopods. 

The babies gathered on a slice of zucchini. 

The old zucchini slice is getting spoiled already - I better remove it now. 

Use a soft brush to move babies from the slice. 

Let's try a slice of carrot this time.

 August 15th - it's been about 6 weeks since I set up this culture. 

I noticed mold started growing on the bark and leaves.

 Normally, I would remove mold right away - I've never seen my other isopods feed on mold. 

Though, I am not sure about Oniscus yet - maybe they eat mold. 

There is only one way to know it for sure - let the mold grow. 

Give isopods a chance to munch the mold...or not. 

August 29th.

 Two weeks passed by and the mold seems to be taking over the entire container. 

The Oniscus isopods scattered away from the mold. 

They even stay in the bright light! 

Remember, normally isopods run away from the light hiding under the bark and leaves. 

Here all leaves and bark are covered with mold. 

And all isopods I see now are barely moving even when I touch them. 

Aha, some isopods gathered on a yet clean slice of potato.

 Also, I do not see adult isopods anymore... 

Now I have to reset this culture to save my Oniscus isopods from the mold. 

The popular belief that Isopods and Springtails feed on mold does not stand fact check. 

Not in my past or current experiment anyway... 

Perhaps certain types of isopods feed on mold or feed on some types of mold... 

Well, more reasonable to me is that isopods compete against mold for food sources. 

That is what makes isopods and springtails the best cleaning crew in terrariums and such.

 Isopods chew the decaying matter where mold otherwise would grow. 

It takes a big crowd of small isopods to keep big tanks clean :) 

Let's skip forward. 

I saved enough Oniscus isopods to keep this culture going after the mold poisoning experiment. 

Here you can see the same about 10 month old culture on April 4th, 2023.

 Once again - my isopods don't eat mold.

 Isopods help in preventing mold from growing. 

And that's about it. 

Isopods make nice, easy to take care pets that terrariums benefit from. 

Though, Isopods do not eat mold. 

Have fun and happy Isopods :)