Common Rough Woodlouse
Porcellio scaber
A small terrestrial crustacean of damp gardens, leaf litter, compost heaps, and the undersides of stones or rotting logs. It feeds mainly on decaying plant matter, fungi, and soft organic debris, helping recycle nutrients in soil. Mostly active at night, it avoids drying out by staying in humid shelters and relies on its rough segmented exoskeleton for protection. Females carry eggs and young in a brood pouch, and the animal breathes through moisture-dependent pleopodal lungs rather than insect-like tracheae.
- Type
- Shell
- Conservation status
- NE