Meet the animal
Armadillidium maculatum is a pill-forming terrestrial crustacean associated with south-eastern France and nearby Mediterranean areas. Colour lines vary. It is not an insect, and the familiar stripes do not prove a particular captive line or origin.
Before you choose one
Plan a growing culture with contained young and a continuing food-substrate supply. This species reproduces sexually, unlike dwarf whites. Keep species and documented lines separate where provenance matters. Introducing it into another animal’s enclosure needs a separate compatibility decision.
Set up its home
The proposed starter layout is 40 × 30 × 30 cm with young-retaining ventilation. Use about 5–8 cm of nutritious substrate, leaves, suitable rotten hardwood and low refuges. Keep one end damp and the other visibly drier. Expand before growth exhausts those choices.
Temperature and safe heating
UK keeper guidance describes around 18–26°C and advises against direct heat mats. Measure the room and protect the culture from sun and sustained high-twenties heat. Exotic availability does not make a heater a default purchase.
Daylight, shade and UV
Ordinary ambient light with a day-night rhythm and shaded cover supports observation. The guidance used here does not establish a UVB requirement or a numerical UVI target. Avoid bright hot windows or lamps that dry the refuge.
Water, moisture and airflow
The source’s 50–70% humidity band is a description rather than the only goal. Water one end and allow the other surface to dry while retaining airflow. Check beneath leaves. Do not seal vents or saturate the whole culture to imitate tropical isopod care.
Food and nutrition
Keep safe decayed leaves and rotten hardwood available, with plain calcium such as cuttlebone. Offer modest supplementary vegetables and suitable protein, removing spoilage. Coir, sweet jelly or fish flakes alone do not replace food substrate. Avoid pesticide-contaminated collection.
Behaviour and handling
Expect hiding, clustering and defensive rolling. Inspect one refuge rather than lifting everything. Isopods moult in stages, so a temporary two-tone body can be normal. Leave moulting animals undisturbed and retain clean shed material where practical.
Health and life stages
Repeated losses, failed moults or persistent decline need experienced culture advice. Check the moisture gradient, airflow, calcium, substrate and additions. Do not use insect sprays or reptile medicines. Surface crowding is a change to investigate rather than proof of a light preference.
Buying and keeping records
Retain species, supplier and line records and keep surplus animals and substrate contained. Isopods are terrestrial crustaceans, excluded from the ordinary pet-invertebrate import note. Ask APHA about the intended route and never release captive stock outdoors.
Your care routine
Before arrival, provide nutritious leaf litter, calcium and both damp and drier areas. Check how much food is eaten, watch for unusual losses and top up leaves and other food as needed. Leave the damp-end routine for holiday cover. Record additions and transfers so a colony problem can be traced.
YOUR CHECKLIST
0 of 8 ticked
Zebra isopod — Armadillidium maculatum
Care hub: wildformexotics.co.uk/animals/zebra-isopod/
Ticks are kept only while this page is open. Print or download a copy before leaving. Completing the checklist does not establish that an animal is well or an installation is safe.
Use these reminders alongside the full guide. Adjust feeding and maintenance to your animal’s condition and measured enclosure conditions.
Sources
- Zebra isopod care guide (PostPods, Daniel Brown)
- UK species livestock listing (dated observation, not stock guarantee) (Repxotics)
- Guidance on section 14 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act (GOV.UK / Defra)
- Import of pet invertebrates, amphibians and reptiles: IIN (GOV.UK / APHA and Defra)
- Import or export endangered species: check if you need a CITES permit (GOV.UK / APHA and Defra)
Equipment checklist
Equipment examples for Zebra isopod, grouped by care need. Read the checks before choosing. Shop links are Amazon affiliate links. Items without a verified Amazon match have no shop link.
Plan the whole setup: These examples cover only part of the setup. Meet every care need and test the finished enclosure before arrival. Suitable equipment you already own may meet the need; optional tools are labelled.
Check each item for your animal’s size and life stage, safe access, compatible controls and measured conditions. The list does not certify an installation.
Adult enclosure, substrate and shelter
Read the care guidance for this need
Also plan for: Choose a colony vessel with verified newborn-safe vents, lid and access gaps. Provide 5-8 cm of nutritious substrate, edible leaves and a damp/drier gradient; 2/5 mm display-box vents alone do not establish retention. Add the substrate, hides, cover and secure supports described in the care guide. The enclosure alone does not provide them.
Temperature and safe heating
Read the care guidance for this need
Exo Terra Digital Thermometer
Model: PT2472
Records minimum and maximum air temperatures near a shelter your animal uses, to help you check the temperature plan.
Fit check: The remote probe measures air at one location. Keep it away from direct lamp heat, secure it safely and keep the display outside. Use separate probes for warm and cool areas where needed. Minimum/maximum readings help track changes; this device does not measure surfaces or control heating. Use a water-rated thermometer for submerged readings.
Lighting, shade and UV
Read the care guidance for this need
Existing lighting may already provide a suitable day-night cycle. If you need extra lighting, use a switch or timer confirmed as compatible with its exact load, including any UVB ballast.
Water, humidity and ventilation
Read the care guidance for this need
Alternative equipment
Exo Terra Mini Mister — 0.5 L
PT2489; 0.5 L hand spray bottle. The Amazon title uses 16 US fluid ounces; this is not the conflicting 1.5/2 L pressure sprayer.
Adjust to the species: do not spray the animal directly, soak every surface or treat a mister as a substitute for drinking water. Use an existing suitable fine sprayer if you have one. Follow the individual wet-dry cycle; do not spray the animal, soak every surface or substitute misting for drinking water.
A manual misting tool only where the individual care plan calls for it. Use clean water, keep the bottle hygienic and free of chemicals, and do not spray directly at the animal. Check substrate/refuge moisture and drying/airflow rather than misting to a universal schedule.
Exo Terra Digital Hygrometer
Model: PT2477
Optional air-humidity monitor
Tracks the air humidity cycle near an occupied area.
Fit check: Place the remote humidity sensor inside the enclosure, away from direct heat. The reading describes air at that point, so record its position and check other areas where needed. Inspect the substrate and damp retreats directly, and keep ventilation clear. A humidity reading cannot show whether an animal has drinking water.
Also plan for: Provide the drinking water, damp retreats or safe water area described in the care guide. A sprayer and humidity gauge cannot provide these on their own.
Feeding and nutrition
Read the care guidance for this need
Alternative equipment
Zoo Med Turtle Bone — two-pack
TB-1; two natural cuttlebones, not a 100 g pack. Manufacturer lists cuttlebone as the sole ingredient.
Not a substitute for nutritious leaves, wood and the rest of the diet. Use only in the species-specific substrate/food plan. Prepare safely, keep free of contaminants and verify depth and moisture. This product alone does not provide the complete diet or habitat.
A plain supplemental calcium component for the listed detritivore plan. Check the delivered label and remove any packaging or holder. It does not replace decayed leaves, decomposed wood or a complete species-appropriate food substrate.
Also plan for: Keep safe decayed leaves and rotten hardwood available, with plain calcium such as cuttlebone.
Equipment notes: Temperature and safe heating
EQUIPMENT TO CONSIDER
Exo Terra Digital Thermometer
Model PT2472 · Remote air probe and minimum/maximum memory; place away from direct lamp radiation. Check the supplier’s current price and availability, and confirm that the item suits your installation.
Records minimum and maximum air temperatures near a shelter your animal uses, to help you check the temperature plan.
Check before choosing: The remote probe measures air at one location. Keep it away from direct lamp heat, secure it safely and keep the display outside. Use separate probes for warm and cool areas where needed. Minimum/maximum readings help track changes; this device does not measure surfaces or control heating. Use a water-rated thermometer for submerged readings.
Equipment notes: Water, moisture and airflow
Alternative equipment
Exo Terra Mini Mister — 0.5 L
PT2489; 0.5 L hand spray bottle. The Amazon title uses 16 US fluid ounces; this is not the conflicting 1.5/2 L pressure sprayer.
Adjust to the species: do not spray the animal directly, soak every surface or treat a mister as a substitute for drinking water. Use an existing suitable fine sprayer if you have one. Follow the individual wet-dry cycle; do not spray the animal, soak every surface or substitute misting for drinking water.
A manual misting tool only where the individual care plan calls for it. Use clean water, keep the bottle hygienic and free of chemicals, and do not spray directly at the animal. Check substrate/refuge moisture and drying/airflow rather than misting to a universal schedule.
EQUIPMENT TO CONSIDER
Exo Terra Digital Hygrometer
Optional air-humidity monitor
Model PT2477 · Remote humidity probe; readings describe air at the probe, not substrate moisture. Check the supplier’s current price and availability, and confirm that the item suits your installation.
Tracks the air humidity cycle near an occupied area.
Check before choosing: Place the remote humidity sensor inside the enclosure, away from direct heat. The reading describes air at that point, so record its position and check other areas where needed. Inspect the substrate and damp retreats directly, and keep ventilation clear. A humidity reading cannot show whether an animal has drinking water.
Equipment notes: Food and nutrition
Alternative equipment
Zoo Med Turtle Bone — two-pack
TB-1; two natural cuttlebones, not a 100 g pack. Manufacturer lists cuttlebone as the sole ingredient.
Not a substitute for nutritious leaves, wood and the rest of the diet. Use only in the species-specific substrate/food plan. Prepare safely, keep free of contaminants and verify depth and moisture. This product alone does not provide the complete diet or habitat.
A plain supplemental calcium component for the listed detritivore plan. Check the delivered label and remove any packaging or holder. It does not replace decayed leaves, decomposed wood or a complete species-appropriate food substrate.