#bug research

Recently I've been researching Helleria brevicornis, a deeply fascinating species imo, and I was preparing to pursue a SuRE grant to perform a study on their breeding behavior. Unfortunately, the entomology professor isn't taking any SuRE student this summer for understandable reasons, but now I had a bunch of academic papers that I was practically foaming at the mouth to read.

Because I'm supposed to know there's cool research about a cool bug that's relevant to the things I would want to study about them and then not read it? Lol incorrect.

The first paper in question is this one: [Belated and Decreased Reproduction in Isolated Females of Helleria brevicornis Ebner (Crustacea, Oniscoïdea). Recuperation After the Addition of Faeces to the Female Environment]

(unfortunately yes, it is behind a paywall, but I was thankfully able to access it through my college library, so maybe try your local library if you're also interested in reading this paper. because it's extremely cool but very not worth $64)

Look, let's all get over the whole poop thing and coprophagia in the little terrestrial crustaceans we all love and admit that this is fucking fascinating. Actually, you're gonna have to get straight up comfy with that fact for this one, because yes, this has to do with isopods eating poop. Or in this case. The wrong poop.

While reading that paper, I noticed this little gem:

The highlighted paper, along with the following one just below it were such a lightbulb moment. And yes, I was also able to access [That Paper]! (also had a paywall. also was able to access through my college library.)

P. scaber are obligate coprophages, requiring this supplemental source of copper to help keep a stable enough concentration in their diet to assimilate it into their necessary bodily functions, like the hemocyanin in their haemolymph.

When I put them in with the other isopods, I put them into an environment that had no P. scaber droppings. There is every chance that O. asellus do not excrete copper or anything else necessary in the process of assimilating it into their tissues. And even once the P. scaber started producing their own droppings, it was lost in the mess of everyone else's. Even though they were undoubtedly still engaging in a usual amount of coprophagy, they simply weren't getting what they needed out of it.

Therefore it is highly likely that they all died from copper deficiency and the two I have are severely lacking and trying to preserve energy and their last precious reserves!

Anyway, i just ordered some new scabers to hopefully rehabilitate these last two and actually get a culture of them going.