Scientific name
Porcellio spinicornis
Porcellio spinicornis often has yellow marbling flanking a dark dorsal area. BMIG distinguishes it from the more random marbling of P. scaber and stresses its association with calcareous substrates. [1]
Origin
Widely documented in Great Britain and Ireland, and in Germany. The sources used do not establish the limits of the original range here. [1][2]
- Calcicolous
- Walls and crevices
- Nocturnal surface activity
Natural-history or taxonomic sources distinguished from breeding accounts; captive limits explicit.
At a glance
Porcellio spinicornis often has yellow marbling and a dark head. Its association with calcareous substrates is documented. [1]
| ADULT SIZE | 8–12 mm Bodentier⁴; up to 12 mm in BMIG. [1][2] |
|---|---|
| LIFESPAN | Not established No supported individual lifespan in the selected sources. |
| LIFESTYLE | On walls and rocks Night searches useful on the surface. [1] |
Adult size
8–12 mm in Bodentier⁴; up to 12 mm in body length in BMIG. [1][2]
Lifespan
No individual lifespan established through a cohort in the selected sources.
Lifestyle
Occurs particularly on walls, limestone rocks and rubble; night searches make it easier to find on the surface. [1]
Housing
NATURAL ENVIRONMENT
Crevices and limestone — Walls, quarries and natural outcrops; no validated captive setup. [1]
No validated captive protocol adopted. An affinity for dry walls does not mean an absence of shelters or a need for permanent dehydration.
Care parameters
CAPTIVE CLIMATE
Not established — No validated husbandry range in the selected sources.
Humidity
Natural environment — Limestone walls and crevices; their exposure does not define a captive target. [1]
Support
Documented affinity for limestone [1] A calcareous environment is not a dietary-supplement dose.
Climate
No air percentage adopted Describe crevices and stone undersides, distinct from the exposed wall face.
Feeding
DIET AND CALCIUM
Affinity for limestone describes habitat without establishing a dietary dose. Ration and supplementation frequency are not determined in the selected sources. [1][2]
Scope of this profile
Natural-history or taxonomic sources distinguished from breeding accounts; captive limits explicit.
Recognising the pattern and antennae
BMIG describes a generally dark head contrasting with the body, two flagellar segments and two pairs of lung patches. These latter characters help rule out Oniscus asellus. [1] Pattern observation must therefore not be isolated from the rest of the anatomy. Photographing the same individual under neutral lighting avoids artificially changing yellow and grey tones.
Understanding walls as habitats
The species is reported on limestone walls or walls with loose mortar, and in quarries and outcrops; some calcium-rich bark is also mentioned. [1] The shelter used may be a crevice or the underside of a coping stone. Do not transfer a wall face’s exposure to the whole microclimate experienced by the animal.
Setup and ventilation: documentary framework
No husbandry trial is described in the selected profiles. This entry can guide observation on a wall or in a quarry but defines no standard enclosure. For a colony already owned, document origin, shelters, background material and vents before changing parameters. A site’s apparent dryness does not justify removing every moisture reserve.
Diet and calcium
Presence on limestone informs habitat; it does not prove a precise amount of calcium consumed. The sources propose neither a ration nor a protein-feeding frequency suited to this species. Every feeding note should identify the material or product and behaviour seen. An animal motionless on limestone cannot automatically be counted as feeding.
Reproduction and young
No maturity age, number of young or captive schedule is given here. A group found under a stone may comprise several species and generations. Keep adult documentation before linking young to P. spinicornis. Dated photos can show population changes, but they do not measure individual lifespan.
Field records and source limits
BMIG states that surface activity makes night surveys useful. [1] Recording time and visibility conditions therefore improves comparison. The second source is retained for size and name, without copying its habitat-and-rolling sentence, which is inconsistent with Porcellio characters. Cross-checking must remain visible rather than concealing this discrepancy.
Checklist
- Record observation times.
- Photograph the head and antennae.
- Distinguish limestone support from a calcium ration.
Observations to record
- Time and exposure
- Shelter and support
- Visible adults and young
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Sources
Document-based overview; not a substitute for veterinary advice.