Dwarf Purple Isopods (Qty-25) & Springtails (8 oz Seeding Cuture) Combo Package, for Amphibian/Reptile/Invertebrate Bioactive Habitats, by Critters Direct

I purchased this product for my ball python enclosure and was very impressed with the packaging. Springtails and isopods were lively and abundant. I did have to use my entire culture for springtails in the enclosure, but I am putting aside the Dwarf Isopods so they can produce a bigger colony. I will order again!

My moss terrarium had a mold growth so I ordered the springtail seeding culture with dwarf purple isopods. They arrived thriving - there were dozens of live critters and the substrate was in great condition, plenty moist. There was no "playing dead" when I opened the package, both cultures were clearly quite alive. I'm excited to see how much terrarium evolves with these guys to keep it clean!

I am very happy with the customer service. I received a large amount and very healthy springtails jumping around. Unfortunately due to cold temperatures my isopods came dead, the customer service was outstanding and they are sending me new isopods, would highly recommend critters for their high quality products and amazing service

It came with two good bioactive recyclers, and they seem to be doing fine in a moist container with ecoearth, leaf litter, moss, and wood. Springtails will need mold to eat, so if you see furry or puffy white/grey/yellow mold growing on soil or food they will probably clean it up if grain mites don’t infest and destroy everything. The isopods are tiny and vaguely purple, they’ll eat wood, leaf litter, ecoearth, frass and remains if it isn’t covered in mold which the springtails can help mitigate. Watch out for grain/flour mites, because once they infest a springtail colony, you basically have to destroy it all since the elimination methods kill springtails too (they’re very small and translucent and creamy white and tend to infest produce and grain in those humid and/or moist enclosures). The mites are the largest problem I have faced universally, but mileage will vary. They don’t do well in unventilated deli cups with moist charcoal, the surface will sprout heavil with furry mold and they’ll mysteriously die off and you’ll never see them again, they do better in leaf litter for me. Do not use in well ventilated containers that exclude a very moist area since it’ll dry them out quickly and you’ll need to regularly pour water and mist, next best options for those are black cleaner beetles or if you have the money a cheaper Spanish Porcellio species which doesn’t need high humidity and moisture.

I enjoyed the isopods but the springtails were less than viable to seed a terrarium as the substrate used for this culture is soil based. Adding water to this only makes mud and the springtails can't float on the water per usual because of the muck. Granted this would be fine if I were to dump the whole culture into a terrarium of mine but I don't use soil for my substrate so I didn't want to mix. Would be easier if they used lump wood Charcoal. Also would be easier for the springstails to have a water level and keep the humidity levels stable in the enclosure for their culture.

I ordered these for a bearded dragon vivarium, and they've already established themselves within a week. It's been snowing where I live so critters direct had the clean up crew held at my post office, and I really appreciated the fact they check weather and strive to keep the critters alive. They were really well packed, the inside of the box was insulated, moist, and had heat packs that were still hot. I ordered two sets of isopods and seeding cultures and they all arrived right on time, alive and thriving. Would definitely go through critters direct again for clean up crews!

Once I got a packaged I noticed it felt a little light. I first I thought “they’re bugs, how heavy are they supposed to be”, but my skepticism was correct once I open the box. Inside were 2 small plastic containers. One of them was a little larger (no larger than 6 fl oz) and contained some charcoal. At first I thought maybe the isopods were mixed in, however once I opened the container it turned out to be just charcoal. The second container was smaller, no larger than those paper cups you get at fast food places that hold the ketchup for fries. That one was slightly more promising as it had some dirt and spag moss inside, but once I opened and examined the contents there were no signs of springtails or dwarf purples, dead or alive. At first I thought “maybe they died on the way shipping” or “maybe they escaped”. The problem is the disposable containers showed no signs of opening and being spilled while shipping, and the inside of the box was spotless. Even if the bugs didn’t need to escape through the containers opening, the only way they could escape would be by holes poked through the containers. However there weren’t any signs of air holes on either container. The reason why they couldn’t have all died is that dead bodies would still remain either inside the containers, or outside if they somehow did escape. After inspecting the containers, the charcoal, the dirt and moss, the box, and even the place where I pick up my mail, there were no signs of dead insects. In conclusion, what I got in the mail was a minuscule cup of dirt and a collection of charcoal. The item description said I would receive 25+ dwarf purple isopods and an 8 oz mix of springtails that would both be alive on arrival. The only thing the seller could have gotten half right is that the insects are alive, however they sent the wrong package and my order is still with the sell, not on arrival. I hope this is only an issue with my order and that this hasn’t or isn’t happening with other buyers, otherwise they would be buying a tablespoon of wet dirt and some wet charcoal for $40+

Fast shipping. Springtail culture was plentiful and active. The isopod culture was also active but i only counted eleven in the container. Definitely not "25+".