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jdostalik
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 5:59pm | IP Logged
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Okay... 
Dd, 8, has been crying for 30 minutes because her pet roly-poly, "Roly" was found dead in his habitat she made for him in a mason jar. She had grass, rocks, leaves and sprinkled a bit of water in occasionally. She had only had him for about 24 hours. What did she forget to make his habitat more friendly? Moist dirt?
Any help would be appreciated...thanks!
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Angel
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 6:10pm | IP Logged
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My resident bug specialists (aged 9 and 7) say that roly-polies like dead leaves, dead wood, moist dirt, and darkness. They also say that you are supposed to put a cut-up potato in their habitat (I guess to keep everything moist and rotten). Pill bugs also like their environment to be kept cool.
My daughter says her pill bugs lived for about a month this way.
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JennGM
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 6:14pm | IP Logged
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Are these isopods or doodlebugs?
We had a conversation in a "Are you a Yankee or Rebel?" thread a while back which spawned this thread Care of Isopods. MacBeth always comes through!
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MacBeth
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 6:54pm | IP Logged
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Hehe. I think Alice's girls got their isopods to breed. 
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MacBeth
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 6:57pm | IP Logged
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When my kids were younger, they set up a "Pill-bug Rescue Society," which included emergency care featuring Lourdes water!!!! Here I was thinking the water was miraculously evaporating from a sealed bottle!
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alicegunther
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 7:22pm | IP Logged
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MacBeth wrote:
Hehe. I think Alice's girls got their isopods to breed. |
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LOL, you remember everything, MacBeth!
And yes, they certainly reproduce quickly! The eggs are carried under the female's abdomen until they hatch, and, believe it or not, the female carries the tiny white offspring in a brood pouch on her underside until they are ready to take care of themselves.
The kids kept theirs in a coffee can with dirt, a piece of raw potato (changed now and then), and a few spritzes of water to keep the environment fairly moist. They are land crustaceans and breathe through gills, so adequate moisture is especially important for them. They also do better in the dark.
MacBeth, the "Pill Bug Rescue Society" is hilarious! It's like something out of E. Nesbit!
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lapazfarm
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MacBeth wrote:
| When my kids were younger, they set up a "Pill-bug Rescue Society," which included emergency care featuring Lourdes water!!!! Here I was thinking the water was miraculously evaporating from a sealed bottle! |
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Oh, that is hilarious! So...did it work?
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MacBeth
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 8:36pm | IP Logged
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lapazfarm wrote:
Oh, that is hilarious! So...did it work? |
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No... . But it kept the kids quite busy that summer!
Yes, Alice...it was very Nesbit  .
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jdostalik
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| Posted: April 29 2006 at 8:42pm | IP Logged
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Ahhh, thanks everyone for your responses. I know we usually find them under rocks, and dead leaves, so I guess I shouldn't have moved her roly poly to the window sill for sun this afternoon? 
Sometimes, I do wonder about my mommy-brain...we may try again...Mary Grace is still mourning Roly, though...she has such a tender heart!
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1st grade mom
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| Posted: April 30 2006 at 10:43am | IP Logged
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Thanks. My dd just picked up one too, but she was worried she would not know what to feed it. The first one she brought home died after an hour or so in a shoebox in a hot car. The next time we made sure to park in the shade. So far we have given it some moist dirt and leaves. Haven't checked on it yet this morning We'll have to try the potato too.
We have kept garden snails indoors for long periods pretty successfully. The latest thing we found out is that they love celery (but not carrots).
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: April 30 2006 at 10:55am | IP Logged
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jdostalik wrote:
so I guess I shouldn't have moved her roly poly to the window sill for sun this afternoon?
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We just wiped out an entire batch of sea monkeys that way. We only MEANT to leave them there a few minutes so the algae could grow...
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jdostalik
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| Posted: April 30 2006 at 6:52pm | IP Logged
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Update:
Roly LIVES!!! 
Last night soon after my last post thanking everyone for their words of wisdom, my 4 yr old, Anna, screams, "there's a bug in the bathroom!" I sent her father to check it out andhe comes with a strange expression on his face and carefully sheltering something in his hands...He then asked Mary Grace, "Where did you dispose of Roly's remains?" She replied, "In the bathroom garbage can."
To make a long story, short, we have had colds here, and the trash bin was overflowing with tissues. Roly must have fallen off onto the floor and revived!
We quickly replaced him in his jar with moist dirt, damp paper toweling, grass, a small rock and an apple slice. I am happy to report that he spent quite a restful and happy night in Mary Grace's closet shelf--a nice dark comfy place! Mary Grace was elated--a happy ending for all!
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~Rachel~
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| Posted: May 03 2006 at 11:07am | IP Logged
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 this is too funny
You can always tell your influence on your kids... for instance, my 2yo DD was screaming yesterday about the 'dwubs, yutty dwubs!' (grubs... we garden )
But she found a robin's egg, and she is fascinated with ants and spiders... until her older brother tells her the spider wants to eat her!
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4Real Forums : Exploring God's Creation in Nature and Science
Topic: pillbugs
