satchellwk

Looks like a periplaneta nymph to me, maybe P. australasiae. Americana and fulginosa manage to get into my colonies all the time, despite efforts to keep them out.

They should be fine with scorpions and centipedes. It may be a good idea to keep an eye on them while they molt though, and make sure the isopod number never get too high. I will say, however, that they are not a good species to keep with roaches or anything else with similar food sources, because I have had pruinosus overpopulate and outcompete roach species if given enough food. They should be fine with large predators because there would be a much more limited food source.

Nope, but if you keep them together chances are one will outcompete the other and you'll end up with just one species. My money would be on the pruinosus.

Isopods are great BUT be careful, I've had isopods multiply so quickly in some roach tanks that they've taken over outcompeted the roach nymphs. In my experience porcellionides are the worst about this, and I'm sure porcellio sp. would be problematic as well. I'd suggest smaller species like trichorhinas or slower reproducing ones like armadillidium.

I live pretty far south and I've never seen them really "infest." However, in the summer months, they're all over the place and get into homes very frequently. My house has a traditional chimney and, at night in the summer, P. americana and fulginosa will utilize it to come in and out, along with the occasional house gecko.

I've been on a bit of an Isopod kick lately. As of now I have: Porcellionides pruinosus, Armadillidium vulgare, A. nasatum, A. maculatum, Porcellio scaber, P. scaber "orange", P. laevis, P. spinicornis, P. dilatus, Oniscus Ascellus, Trachelipus rathkii, Cylisticus convexus, Venezillo parvus, Venezillo sp. keys, Oniscidea sp. "Florida Fast", Trichorhina tomoentosa, "Dwarf striped", an unknown species of porcellio from northern Florida, another unknown porcellio from south Alabama (could be same species as the Florida one), and some tiny Trichoniscidae sp I found here in central Alabama.

So, I'm having phorid fly issues. It all started a month or two ago, I had 2 separate dubia colonies, both of which were overdue for a substrate change. I started a new bin, combining both colonies of roaches and any of my cleaner crew I could pick out of the substrate (I have a mix of dermestid beetles, lesser mealworms, and P. pruinosus isopods). However, I dumped most of the old cardboard paper towel rolls and egg cartons since it was getting old and moldy. Well, I had planned to get some large egg flats for the bin, but upon searching local farmer's co-ops, I was unable to locate any. Therefore, my colony remained for about a week with minimal amounts of surface area or hides. So, when I opened the container, there were quite a few dead individuals, and, since I ended up losing a great deal of my cleaner crew from the substrate change, phorid flies had absolutely taken over. I cleared out what i could and put in some large, vertically stacked pieces of tree bark, so there seemed to be plenty of space now. however, I flies still aren't going away. My cleaner crews look to be reproducing alright, but I don't know when they'll be to the point they were before. Also, the roaches don't seems to be dying at any rate higher than usual, but I still have tones of flies. I've just been taking the bin outside and letting as many fly out as I can about once a week, but they're still breeding. Could they just be breeding in the substrate or something? TL;DR: I got phorid flies and they don't seem to be going away. Will they eventually just phase out, or should I just dump the whole thing (again) and start with fresh substrate and whatnot? Any help is greatly appreciated.

You lay back and accept the fact that grain mites will forever be a part of your life. But, yeah, isopods and springtails do help.

I currently have: A. vulgare A. nasatum a ludicrous amount of Porcellionides pruinosus And two, as of now unidentified species. Both were collected along the Alabama Gulf coast back last summer. One I believe might be the same species as Kyle's Oniscidae sp. "Florida Fast." Pic: The other is some variety of very small pillbug. The best guess Kyle and I have is Venezillo sp, but we aren't sure. Good news is both of these species seem to be reproducing alright. I started with only a pair of the pillbugs and I have about a dozen now. Pic:

I wouldn't be too worried about it. Yes, there is a chance of bringing in parasites, but Isopods, especially A. vulgare, are quite hardy and, besides, you could always just start an entirely wc colony if something happens. All CB colonies had to start WC at one point anyway.

Well, the deal with protista is that it's literally a group for whatever does't fit into the existing groups. There is no evolutionary connection between anything in protista that unify them. I believe there is a movement to abolish the kingdom and add its members into the kingdoms that they are more closely related to, assuming they amend the qualifications for the kingdoms in question. Also, protozoan is not the same thing as protist.

I agree Keith and Island Reptiles are great choices, but I would also throw Cariblatta's name into the mix. He's a great guy who really loves his bugs and does a great job in his husbandry.

I found some isopods like these at the Alabama coast a few months ago, though I wasn't sure if they were if they were actually a small species or just immatures. They're certainly a cool little species.