Rollie pollies in the viv

[moosassah]

Is it OK to take these from outside & place them in my viv? It's easier than tracking down & paying for the centerpied.

 

[malt_geckos]

Why would you want them in the vivarium?

 

[Ipsl]

Ive seen people with them. I thought they ate Rhac poo and they eat them. Or so I thought.

 

[gaparicio]

I know rollie pollies eat the waste that animals leave behind and the fact that they aerate the soil but I didn't know or realize that the cresties might eat them. Kinda makes sense but I guess I just never put any thought into that part.

 

[moosassah]

I too was under the impression it was to help with keep/improve the natural/living environment I'm trying to provide.

Leads to yet another question...are the centerpieds too large for the crestie to be interested in? I've never seen one.

 

[lil_katiedan]

Centapedes are poisonous, millipedes are not. I would be kinda scared to put centepedes in the tank with my geckos.

 

[David Loftin]

Centipedes in the Tank is a BIG no no! They are poisonous, the larger varieties eat anything that they can get their little jaws on [I have seen one take down a large adult mouse] and they are creepy little things.. Hahah.

Millipedes/Isopods/Pill Bugs/Roly Polys are awesome additions to a "natural" tank. They break down fecal matter, the majority of them breed very easily with the correct humidity and temperatures, they aerate the soil and promote new growth to your plants in the cage, they can also help your gecko eat its food and your gecko can eat them because they are really high in calcium. If you are looking to get some of these other than the backyard variety, do a search on Kingsnake for Pillbugs or Isopods. You will almost always find someone that is at least selling the Spanish Orange Isopods. Did I say they breed really easily? Well.. They do.

 

[ByRandom]

I think he was refering to the African Giant Millipede (Archispirostreptus gigas), which I have heard of people putting in their enclosures to do the same thing that the isopods do.

 

[Sunrise Reptile]

You should NEVER put a centipede in with any other animal; regardless if it's reptile, mammal or invert. They are highly venomous and can inflict a serious bite. I can actually provide links to posts, most of which also have pictures, of people that use isopods in their enclosure. Milipedes are also OK as Josh stated.

 

[moosassah]

I think she was refering to the African Giant Millipede (Archispirostreptus gigas), which I have heard of people putting in their enclosures to do the same thing that the isopods do.

Yes, that is the one creepy crawly that I kept seeing in posts. I mispoke. Thank you everyone for the information. I'll continue reading up & see where it takes me.

 

[bleeding_sarcasm]

Isopods are rad, and our orange ones breed like crazy in with the baby vivs. The cool thing about them, [and rolliepollies that you find outside] is that their shell is made out of calcium, not chitin like mealworms and crickets, so if your gecko decides to have a snack its all good. We have quite a few african black milis and they are alot of fun to watch, very active, and use the whole tank [vertical space included!] They eat left over CGD and just keep things clean. a fun viv addition.

 

[acpart]

I've got roly-poly's from the back yard in all 3 of my planted viv's. Every now and then I see them (there's lots of moss on the bottom so they're hard to see) and since I've seen small ones I assume they're breeding. I don't know how much it's due to them but I never clean out my planted tanks and after 1.5-3 years the plants are doing well, so are the geckos and there's no smell.

Aliza

 

[HepCatMoe]

hey, watch out with the millipedes too guys. while they are not venomous, a lot of them are poinsoness, meaning if eaten they can make your gecko very sick, or even kill it. if your dead set on puttin millis in your tank do some research on its particular species first.

isopods are safe and cool though.

 

[lil_katiedan]

That's really cool. So far we haven't ever had a tank where we needed something like this but I will definately remember for future reference.

 

[Sunrise Reptile]

Isopods are really popular with invert keepers because they go around the enclosure bottom, which is forest floor type in most cases, and eat up the leftover/dead/decaying materials. Very beneficial when trying to avoid mite infestations! :main_yes:

 

[OSUgecko]

I would be worried about your geckos picking up parasites from the environment if you just threw pillbugs from your backyard into the tank. Much rather grab some CB from a breeder.