Panda King Isopods (Cubaris sp) are found in Vietnam's humid caves, just like the beloved and elusive Rubber Ducky Isopod. Many beginner isopod farmers are taken back by the overall cost to purchase a starter colony of these "designer isopods." However, if you love the Cubaris species and the Rubber Ducky Isopods are out of your price range, the Panda Kings is another wonderful option. With a unique pattern and a quicker reproductive rate once established, Panda King Isopods are some of our favorites out of the Cubaris species here at Rubber Ducky Isopods in Colorado.
Panda King Isopod Care Sheet
The reason for such drastic pricing between Cubaris murina isopods compared to the more expensive Panda King Isopods and Rubber Ducky Isopods; is the amount of time it takes for those same species colonies to breed and establish a healthy colony!
Once these Isopods begin breeding, the Panda Kings are notorious for being robust and prolific - enough to start generating new colonies of your own Panda King Isopods for sale. Rubber Ducky Isopods usually take six months to a year to establish, entirely based on the Isopod farmer's skillset within a month or two.
The Panda King Isopod has become the next exotic, sought after, Cubaris species isopod simply because of the rapid reproduction rates once your new Isopod colony becomes established. Not only do they enjoy the same temperature and humidity conditions as the Rubber Ducky Isopods, but they also seem to be vastly more tolerant of humidity changes. Depending on your setup, this allows for added flexibility in the overall environment that Isopods are kept, permitting you to cater your Isopod room to the Isopods that have stricter needs.
Panda King Isopods Diet
Protein Sources: We have personally found that the Panda King Isopods prefer to consume much larger weekly protein sources than Rubber Ducky Isopods. We use the "Goldilocks Approach" when feeding newly established Isopod colonies, meaning that only the amount of food that can be consumed with a day's time is added at a time. A recommended focused diet of Shrimp Pellets and Organic Nutritional Yeast seems to be the perfect combination to assist the robust breeding that the Panda King Isopods have become known for.
- Lionhead Rabbit Manure (Cold Manure)
- Organic (Non-GMO) Nutritional Yeast
- Shrimp Pellets (Fish Store)
- Shrimp Meal (Down To Earth)
- Shrimp Shells (Asian Markets)
- Cricket Insect Frass
Calcium Sources: Again, variety is the spice of life for these unique cave-dwelling isopods. They seem to reproduce with cuttlebone calcium, but species colonies begin to come alive and thriving with Limestone and Sea Corral calcium as their primary calcium sources.
- Cuttlebone (Reptile Store)
- Limestone (Panda King Preferred)
- Emulsified Egg Shells (Powder Form)
- Sea Corral Calcium
- Kefir (Lactose-Free)
Pesticide-Free Leaf Litter: It is vital to remember when purchasing these designer isopods that we do not skimp on the last essential diet and habitat ingredient, known as leaf litter. Yes, we can gather leaves outside, but unless you are confident that those leaves are pesticide-free... Why risk killing off your colonies?
- Magnolia Leaves
- Oak Leaves
- CBD Hemp Leaves
- Cannabis Leaves
- Cover Crop (12 Seed Blends)
Vegetable Sources: Panda King Isopods seem to CRAVE certain vegetables for continued rapid breeding and colony health. We have found that we have more success by focusing on vegetables and no longer concentrating on fruit sources.
*Fruit seems to quickly attract fruit flies as well as fungus gnats into the living soil system. Without proper beneficial predatory insects, the fruit begins to cause more issues of imbalance than it solves.
- Organic Sweet Potatoes
- Organic Zucchini Slices
- Organic Carrots
- Freeze Dried Green Beans
- Freeze Dried Peas
