Hi all Hope your well.

Right I've had this problem going month's back and yes youve guessed trying to keep my T's tank's clean.

So I done some reading up and found that Woodlice are good Tank cleaner's but then there was another problem and that was putting something wild caught into my tank's wich I did not feel safe about doing so off again I went doing more reading, I was told to leave the woodlice in a tub for a few day to make sure what ever pest's they had were dead.

So that went all to plan but again there was yet a problem I just kept running out off Woodlice.

Until I found out for myself how too breed them and now I have more than plenty .

So if you would like too breed Woodlice for your own use then here the trick how too do it .

First you will need a tub or a cricket box will do (eg photo below).



For the next part you will need a ''none'' pestacide potting soil you dont realy need too fill the tub up that much let's say around an inch deep .

Now spray some water onto the soil and make sure it's plentyfull Woodlice like it too be humid(70%-80% works best for me) because they do moult just like a reptile or Tarantula.

Now they need some food try adding some damp moss this provide's shelter for the young and food plus you ''will'' need to add dead leave's not fresh because Woodlice mostly eat rotting leave's and of course they love rotting wood not freshly cut wood this will not work.

Ok in order for them too breed the humidty must be high as said before but the temp need's to be high let say 20c-25c wich is room temp so that handy you will have too wait a while too see any baby's but with in 2-3 week if you lift up a dead leaf you should find the young hidding and eatting under it .

Here are some photos of the young with adult Woodlice if you can see the young that is.


A view form above of their food and hiding spot's (notice the leaf that has been eaten)


Anyways hope this work's well for you and dont forget too give them fresh rotting food wich should not be hard to find (eg local park or garden).

Thanks all .

nice thread also they will eat chalk (stuff you might find in the ground in southern england) if you soak it in warm water. not sure if it helps much but they do

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The difference between fooling around and science is writing it down.

They eat chalk never heard off that well you learn something new everyday and thanks for the tip I'll go and make a big hole in my wall now and see if they like it (only joking god know's whats mixed in with it).

And if anybody else has any tip's feel free too share the info the more the better .

cheers! think i will try this I have a colony living quite happily in my H.lividium tank, it has been existing autonomously for a couple of years now.

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They need some sort of calcium supplement for their exoskeleton - remember they are crustaceans I give mine a small lump of rock chalk or a piece of cuttlefish. Oh they also adore fishsticks

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I Love Legget

Surely that would make them Chalklice?

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http://barneysbees.webs.com/

wow thats grate im going to try that out.

Not sure how long they will last in the tank though?

All depend's on how hungry the spider is .


Thought I'd give this an update too while Im at it.

I have moved them in to a better tub with about 3inche's of substrate and plenty of leaf and wood and they seem to like it much more, there's hundred's of them plus Im sure I seen springtail's in there also wich is even better again but the woodlice out beat them for now I may even setup another tub:) .



This little one is one one quater the size of a pin head or maybe smaller.


Can you see them .

I love that pic, look at it's cute little face Not sure why, but I have a real soft spot for slaters.....

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All that I am, all that I ever was, is here in your perfect eyes. They're all I can see.
Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away........Dressmaker 28.3.1940 - 20.11.2009
I miss you with all that is left of my heart. Sleep well my darling lardy crip

ever seen the big sea slaters mirf? awesome things to find

I am breeding ALOT of pill woodlice for a woodlouse eating spider that cant seem to get enough of them... the 1st babies are adult now so its started the cycle again

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The difference between fooling around and science is writing it down.

I have and they are brilliant

You can't feed pill slaters to your spider, they are too sweet! For some reason we don't seem to have them in Wales.

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All that I am, all that I ever was, is here in your perfect eyes. They're all I can see.
Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away........Dressmaker 28.3.1940 - 20.11.2009
I miss you with all that is left of my heart. Sleep well my darling lardy crip

Woodlice need things to be humid also because they breath through gills which they need to keep moist

Thier cute alright but Im afraid to move the substrate incase I squash one or two I even seen a good few moulting at the same time .







Well said

hi redrum, i didn,t want to breed woodlice, but in my large contico box with my giant hissers there are now 100,s of them might be more woodlice than hissers now. teresa xx

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i am in to animals insects cats almost any creature!!

Thats a good thing because they will help you with clean up plus you could put them into other viv's to keep them clean .

THANKS FOR THAT, BUT THEIR A PAIN IN THE BUTT WHEN I AM TRYING TO CATCH HISSERS THEY ARE EVERY WHERE. TERESA XX

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i am in to animals insects cats almost any creature!!

No problem but at least thier slower .