That little armored creature rolling around under your rocks is older than the dinosaurs, tastier than you'd think, and better for your soil than you knew.
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The Humble Pill Bug: More Than Just a Backyard Curiosity
That little armored creature rolling around under your rocks is older than the dinosaurs, tastier than you'd think, and better for your soil than you knew.
You give it a poke, and this little creature curls up into a well-defended ball.
I first encountered them as "roly-poly bugs" soon after my arrival to California. But these little guys have a lot of different names: Pill bugs, roly poly bugs, sow bugs, common woodlice, isopods etc. The scientific name of Riverside's species, Armadillidium vulgare (the common little armadillo), is longer than they are!
Despite their common names, these guys are not formally "bugs" nor are they "lice." "Bugs" and "Lice" are formally subsets of insects. Insects and sow bugs are very distantly related members of the large group of animals with exoskeletons and jointed legs, the Arthropoda. Pill bugs group within the crustaceans, which includes lobsters, crabs, and shrimp. Like other crustaceans, they breathe through gills, hence even though they are terrestrial, they only survive in moist habitats. Unlike other crustaceans, pill bugs lay their eggs into a specialized body part called a "marsupium" within which the eggs hatch and the resulting baby roly polys are nourished. Eventually the young depart mom and make their way on their own.
Pill bugs mind their own business. They are neither dangerous nor annoying. Some people keep them as pets. You are apt to find them in dark and moist habitats in your yard, under a rock or a log, for example. They love a dense cover of ivy. They consume dead plant materials and are good for soil health. Likewise, they provide food for a variety of creatures: birds, frogs, toads, newts, lizards, specialized spiders, and small mammals such as moles and voles.
Riverside's common pill bug is native to Mediterranean Europe. Native species of pill bugs still live in natural habitats, such as coastal sage scrub. Different species of roly polys come in different colors, red, yellow, black-and-white striped, and more. Our local pill bugs are dark gray, with the occasional bright blue individual. The blue color was initially thought to be due to genetic variation. However, experiments revealed that the blue color is due to the presence of a virus.
Their tight evolutionary relationship with notable seafood prompted me to research their edibility for humans. I was surprised to find that they are not only edible, but palatable, often described as "shrimp-like." Some aficionados recommend eating them boiled or sauteed. All agree that they should not be consumed raw. A few experts recommend holding pill bugs for a day or so for them to "clear" their systems. For more culinary information, seek out online videos for cooking instructions.
Tasty and protein-rich, some scientists have promoted pill bugs and close relatives as "micro-livestock" to graze on moist compost or vegetable food waste. Like insects, sow bugs are cold-blooded, resulting in a source of protein that is tremendously more efficient than warm-blooded sources such as poultry and beef. Consequently, a burger made from sow bugs would be much more sustainable than one from a sow!
While the prospect of roly poly feedlots along Interstate 5 in the Central Valley may seem like the stuff of science fiction, the billions of them who Riverside already serve important ecological roles servicing our soils and as a food source for our fauna. Given that it's Earth Day, that's plenty!
This article benefited from the input of Dr. Michael Fugate of UCR.
Norm Ellstrand is an emeritus Distinguished Professor of Genetics and former Director of the California Agriculture and Food Enterprise at the University of California Riverside.
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