#isopod

Isopod charms are now live on Etsy! Come get them before they scurry away under some leaves or a log!! 19 different varieties to choose from! https://etsy.me/3zGxUyv

The Arctic isopod (Arcturus baffini) lives in freezing polar water, but is actually closely related to the woodlouse (potatoe bug, sowbug, pillbug) commonly found in gardens. Rather than scavengers, like most isopods feeding on dead animals at the bottom of the ocean, this isopod is a suspension feeder catching small particles of food drifting in the water. They use their large front antennae to carry around their babies.

Ame’s love for terrariums inspired me to model one, I also thought that upcycling an old PC into a terrarium would be super cool.

Another little fellow (the merms up to now were from last year, now we’re getting to the new ones)! Munnopsis are a diverse genus of isopod, frequently found in the cold depths. They’re just hanging out and propelling themselves around with their long spidery limbs. Shrimply living their best isopod life.

The Giant Isopod has gotten a bit of limelight the last few years. One can find lots of cute isopod plushies now (good) but also lots of pictures showing humans holding them up, poking and prodding and being disgusted at their underbellies (bad). There is some pretty gnarly footage of it’s feeding process, calling it “alien” and “gross”. But isopods can survive for amazing timespans without eating, and when you see a video like that, you never know how long the animal has been starved before it was taken. Let’s show some respect! Maybe not everything was made to be perceived!