| Common Striped Woodlouse (Philoscia muscorum (Scopoli, 1763)) |
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Scientific name: Philoscia muscorum (Scopoli, 1763) Common name: Common Striped Woodlouse Other names: Fast Woodlouse French name: Cloporte des mousses Order: Isopoda Family: Philosciidae Size: 11 mm. Habitat : In the litter under hedgerows, under damp wood logs. Less frequent in gardens than Oniscus asellus or Porcellio scaber. Food: Decaying plants, rotting wood. Reproduction : The female carries the eggs and the babies underneath in a brood pouch. Geographic area: Europe, introduce to North America. |
Sowbugs are land crustaceans, they breathe through gills on their legs. They have a carapace made up of articulating plates. They have seven pairs of legs. The Common Striped Woodlouse is a shiny brownish colour, mottled with light patches. It shows a dark dorsal stripe. The head is black and contrasts with the rest of the body. There is a small yellow patch just at the back of the head. The lateral edges of the body are a pale colour with tawny patches. There is an obvious discontinuity between pereon and pleon. The flagellum of the antenna has three articles. The legs are rather long and the Common Striped Woodlouse is used to running away very fast when disturbed. |
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I do not observe large groups of Common Striped Woodlice in my garden but I am used to observing a few of them on a regular basis. I have not yet been able to shoot a nice picture showing all the body because of their fast speed to run away. They are easy to tell apart with their black head, their dark dorsal stripe, their pale edges with tawny marks and the discontinuity between the pereon and the pleon. You can also see its long legs on this picture. That is why it is able to move very fast. |
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Here is a slightly better picture. You can clearly see the small yellow patch just at the back of the head. |
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I mainly observe Common Striped Woodlice under stones. |
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You can see the three articles of the flagellum on this picture. |
André Bon January 2021