What do Rollie Pollies Eat?
What do Rollie Pollies (Rolly Pollies) Eat?
Turns out rollie pollies (sometimes spelled rolly pollies) aren’t overly picky eaters. Rollie pollies, also called pillbugs, could survive mostly on soft, decaying matter, like grass and leaves, and still live between two and five years. They can also safely eat fish food, fresh vegetables, and even crumpled-up cardboard. See what I mean about not being picky?
But that’s not all. Rollies pollies munch on scat, including their own, and decaying matter, like flesh. Rollie pollies need copper to live, and each time the bugs defecate, they lose a little of it—hence the recycling process. This practice is called coprophagy. They have also been known to eat mulch. They tend to make their homes in wooded areas, particularly where there are plenty of damp leaves and other decaying vegetation, where food can easily be found. They can also be found living in piles of compost and areas containing mulch.
Rollie Pollies Eating Habits Aid in Decomposition
Rollie pollies are (like some beetles) also decomposers: They consume material from dead plants and animals and return essential nutrients back into the earth. They are considered beneficial decomposers because of this ability. However, they don’t always prefer to eat dead materials. Sometimes they’ll eat ripe fruit or vegetables that are in contact with soil. When plant growth is slow-moving during times of cooler temperatures, rollie pollies’ hunger may take over, and they may harm the lush roots or stems of certain plants found in the garden. This damage-causing behavior, however, seldom occurs. To some home dwellers’ dismay, some rollie polllies may make their way into buildings. This is especially true when vegetation runs alongside the house. Wet soil, due to poor drainage or other conditions, is also an invitation for rollie pollies to enter a house.
Lester Ehler, an entomology professor at the University of California, found that rollie pollies also eat the eggs of stink bugs. Stink bugs are known to cause crop damage; therefore, the rollie pollie may be considered an asset in insect control. According to Wayne Mathis, a retired entomologist from the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C., some stink bugs are predatory and are also used in biocontrol of other insects. So between stink bugs and then rollie pollies, much insect control is occurring.
What Do Rollie Pollies Eat if Kept as a Pet?
If taken in as a pet, the rollie pollie might enjoy a wider array of foods. A petowner could fatten up the bug with fresh fruits and vegetables, such as carrots, lettuce or even apples skins. The bugs can also eat the skin of zucchinis and potatoes. Oatmeal is also an edible option for them. Crumpled egg cartons, in addition to cardboard, are also safe for them to eat, as long as there is no print on the material. Water is their beverage of choice. The bugs’ food can be spread out within their habitat once a week. If the rollie pollie is a pet, it’s important to remember that any of their uneaten food should be removed from their habitat before the food gets moldy.
With a menu like that, it’s no wonder rollie pollies survive as long as they do!
Related Pests
- No Related Pest
Once we had over 150 Rollie Pollies
I love Rollie Pollies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He is cute
I love rollie polies they're so cute
What enclosure would rolly pollies survive best in? I can't find one just right.
I have a rolly polly and i fed it apples and i collect them but one of them keeps rolling up what do i do
I found a rolly polly in my back yard.
so i was out side feeding my cats and there was a round dome looking peice of plastic on the ground so i picked it up to toss it in the trash but i ended up finding like 25 of the the little things so i took the opportunity to start a farm. but the thing is i cant tell witch are female and witch are male. but i did find like 3 babies on top of a few older ones so i think those were female mothers. but i mean what do i know?
I found a Roley Poli analyzing me so far I don’t know what to feed it, but I had it for one day without eating so help me with that. Thank you.
Hi I have Rosie my Tilly poile and I will give Rosie catbird
What do rolly polies eat?
I have a rollie pollie its name is Oakley 🤗
I found like 40 rollie pollies behind the carlot and put them in a contaner. And 1 of them is 2 colors! Half black and half gray. Btw when i leave I will ovi put the back were I found them. I lllllooooovvvvveeeee animals!!!! (thanks for the info!)
I usually put my dog's poop into nature and I've seen roly polies feast on it and they're always all over piles of my dog's poop
I have 2 pet rolly polls names Wrigley ans Alice
I have a pet roly poly and hes the best. his name is turbo
if you have rollie Pollies put them in you'r compost
I saw a rolli pole on the street a few days ago and it was about to get ran over but I felt bad because I love animal life and I couldn’t just leave it there so I took it home and I was doing everything I could to keep it alive and the next day my brother found one too they are both still alive and I am trying to keep it that way but this website has been helpful on this journey so thank you and I am very happy to hear that other people care about animal life and is willing to protect it ❤️❤️for the animal kingdom 👑👑❤️❤️👑❤️👑🥹😄
Lol in my school, there was a "roly poly tree" which contained like 20 roly pollies and people were stepping on them. So i took one and saved it. Is been alive for a day and still is. Btw thanks for the info!
Wow thanks for the tips :) I know what to do to feed now :)
I found a rollie pollies and it like me!
Do they like lucky charms?
I have a Rollie Polly in my friends back yard and we are helping survive we love the animal environment it’s so healthy to keep the bugs here on earth so we are trying to help it survive thank for ur information it really helped us for saving bugs .
I was tearing down a duck run (like a chicken yard but for ducks) yesterday, I lifted a piece of old cardboard and Holy 💩 i found over 100 males, 250 females and i didn't bother counting all the eggs i found. I have terrariums so i took advantage of my find! I cant wait to watch the eggs hatch!!
I need help catching Rollie pollies. I left out a bunch of berrys for them to eat that I picked from a tree. Will that work
when i was little I found a rollie pollie and then I asked my mom what it was and she said it was a rollie pollie and I asked to keep it and she said yes so I kept it until it died when I was like 6 or 7 years old ever since then I've been looking for them and since then I've collected 100.
I HAVE 2 ROLLIES AND THEY ARE MALE AND FEMALE THE MALE IS BRADDLY AND THE FEMALE IS ROSE THEY HAVE NO BABYS YET!!!!!!!!!!!☹☹
I have a Rollie pollie that my mo doesn’t know about so let’s see how long it lasts
I just cout a rolly polly and it loves grass but I want to peel an apple an eat it but use the peel to feed it.
me and my friend were looking for rollie pollies and we found 20
i have a pet rollie pollie bug named polly me and my bff found it and we just thout it would eat like littlw bugs but it eats cardbord and we where at school when we founs it so we had cardbord
When I was 4 years old I saw a Rollie pollie.Since then I have loved Rolly pollies
I found a roly poly then I found some friends. I started to breed them and now am a roly poly owner
I found a rolli in my bathroom I named him Greg and I made him a home from a recycled nutilla jar I give him cut up cucumbers for food. I let him run around sometimes and he likes it but he always come back to me.
Me and my cousin have around 20 Pill Bugs. And me and her have been wondering, how can you tell if they are a Male or a Female? And what does it mean if there is a white pill bug? It would really help if you would answer our question! And what should we keep them in? We have them in a large box....with a couple holes...Is that good?
I love it in my bugbox
can we have them as a pet
I have a couple of adorable roly polies and they have lasted one year now in their safe container :)))). I have just got a few but then I realized some conditions in my backyard are bad for my wild polies so I put some of the weaker wild polies in my container and they are healthy now. I mainly give them leaves but when my strawberry plant grows a small strawberry I give them it. :DDD.
i have six of them
i killed a rollie pollie
do rolly pollies really eat fish food
I am going to get two Rollie pillows this Summer with my friend and I’m going to keep it as a pet.I needed to know what they eat and how to take care of them properly so that they don’t die like they always do.Thank you for posting this it was very helpful.:)
I had a rollie pollie whrn i was in 5th grade i had like 5 each of thier names started with a R and then they died. I nwas sad cux i feed threm and had thrm trapped in a water bottel. and then i left them in the bottle or a few days too see if they came back to live.:((((((((((
I'm doing a school project on Roly Polys, the Scientific Name is Armadillidiidae.
i need to take a test on rolly polies.
Flip over a log
So i havena few rollie pollies and i wanna know the difference between females and males
I have thousands of them in my garden and they are eating everghing! How can I get rid of them and should I.
Tell me what a rollie pollie eats pls
Hi, I am planning on catching rollie pollies… anyone have any tips for me?
I found 3 pill bugs and i put grass and little bits of leaves do i need dirt
Hi!! I made an enclosure for my roly polies. There’s a plant in the middle and i planted some other small weeds that i found in my backyard. I want them to grow and spread a little. I put some leaf litter over the soil and put some leaf litter and bark over it for roly polies to hide under. I also put some rocks about a quarter under the soil for some terrestrial effect. I spread some lettuce and cut up carrots around the pot. The roly poly i have has tried to climb out of the pot, but thankfully it’s too slippery and even if they make it up there, a lip slopes over it and they would fall over. I will replace their food every week. I only have one roly poly right now, but i will try to find more because they need friends. I also put some small branches in there that they can climb on. The roly poly has buried themself right now, i guess because they can tell it’s about to rain soon. is there anything i can add to the pot to make it better for roly polies?? Thanks!!!
Wow I can not believe that that’s what they eat that’s amazing because I never seen a bug that can eat real food and carboard😂😂😂😂
I just took a baby one into my house and put it into a glass container. This was very helpful. At the moment I am feeding him cardboard as he/she is just a baby and I don’t wanna overfeed him/her.
we found rollie-pollies because my little sister’s fish is almost dead.she loves them!thank you
I have roly polys and they had babies a couple months ago and they all are alive thanks to this page ☺️
I have two pill bugs and one is named Rolly and the other is Polly. This morning Rolly died. 😢 Polly ran all over the place until I picked her up. I will miss Rolly.
OMG this website was SO HELPFUL!
Wow this is a really good site. My little sister keep going outside to get food. We now have pet Rollie Pollies
my frend had a rolly pollie and i want to now what they eat!
Oh my goodness, I had no idea pillbugs were called roly polies and that they were kept as pets! I’ve just discovered them, so to speak, because I noticed two of them seemed to be hanging out together on two different occasions! Pretty interesting behaviour! So of course, being human, I started to want to protect them & wondered if they had enough to eat & drink in the kitchen. 🙂 As a result of becoming more aware of the intelligence & preciousness of the lives of creatures, I’ve become a vegan. I feel much better this way & am constantly amazed by the seeming individuality & awareness of each little life, no matter how small. Anyway, very best wishes & thanks for the post!
I had 20 roly poly’s in a habitat, and i came out this morning and they were all upside down and lifeless. I don’t know what happned. They had also just had babies.
I’m taking care of two of them
i have a few roly pollies and some snails and ants in a container would they get along? Also, what should i put in the container if i have these creatures?
Thanks!
How do you tell if a Rolly Polly is a female?😜I have two Rolly Pollys.🤗
just caught around 50 pillly bugs and we arei put them in a cardboard box with holes is that ok
I have 63 rolly pollys in a tiny container from a filler store cauld dieso and a lady bug, do you think they’d get along? 🐜
I have about 215 rolly pollies ranging from golden, rust, grey, brown, mottled, and white, and they ADORE lettuce, chickweed, grass, and I once saw them eat a dead earthworm. 😄 They love nesting in gum balls and under shells and bark. I house them in a 5-gallon bucket.
I have 20 rollie pollies but how do I tell if they male or female?
Ty, WekWek.
how big should a roly poly terrarium be? Is it okay to have a female and a male in the same terrarium?
Does anyone know how big a habitat a rollie pollie needs? Mine have a very small one.
( Sorry i cant put my name )
I have a bunch of rolly pollies my biggest one is almost an inch and they all seem to love chiclid flake fish food.
I just made a terrarium in a 2 liter bottle and once i caped it i saw something moving looked closer and saw 2 pill bugs. One is slightly larger than the other but they seem to be sticking together. I have one leaf in there now should I put in more? I have some plants will they be fine till the plants start dropping leafs?
I love rollie pollies! I’m going to have rollie pollies! I have fish food to feed them. I also love animals too!
Thanks for the info! By the way, what type of cardboard will they eat? Does it have to be moist? Can I use a paper bag?
do they eat leave because i have a rolly polly i think eat flowers.
Yes, rollie pollies eat leaves and also flower vegetation.
How does it hunt tbh?
Do rolly pollie bugs eat slugs?
Hi Patrick,
Rolly pollie bugs eat mostly decaying organic plant material. It is possible that they could eat part of a slug that had died but not likely.
rollie pollies don’t eat slugs -_-
my roly poly got dehydrated and died. btw dead one’s name is speckles. have another one name is marshmellow. sorry cant put real name I like remaining anonymous…………………..
Hao,I know you are using mom’s E-mail>,< !*Hmf>,
THANKS,SO MUCH,now I almost know everything about,CUTE LITTLE PILLYS! So,so,so sorry that I don’t have a E-male<(^^<(.Anyways,I think I know how to solve this little problimo. So put the other the in another jar.Or throw it away.Ya,something like that,well only if you want to.You know Hao,I have 101 pill bugs,and still don't fight for mates,they just go with the flow,GET IT LITTLE SIS!I know I'm in school,and my teacher is coming!BY,I'M GETTING IN TROBLE!BY!TAKE CA-A-OH!
do rollie pollies fight with the babys or does the mom hurt them??
THE BABYS WERE BORN IN MY HAND SO IM HOPEING THEY DO NOT GET HURT
SORRY CANT PUT EMALIL OR REAL NAME
My rollie pollie 705just had babies im sorta nervos
I got 3 pill bugs,but the two male ones are fighting for the only female, Serina, my female is really sad,and scared,because,the first male one is her LOVER,and it looks likes is DIEING, so BADLY, and also Serina is hiding behind the rocks!!!!Can you,or someone solve it,I’d greatfull if you can help me,thank you ,SO SO SO MUCH!!!!!!!
I love my rolly polly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All ready have a pet!😀😀❤️💕
Best pet facts about rolly pollies
I’m planning on keeping a rolly polly so this was very useful, thank you!
My Roly-poly……. DIED!!WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Hi!I am new!Thank you,now you see Sleepy
[My sleepy little only rolly polly!]
>_<
I love my pet rolly pollie he is fat and i love him lol
I have 5 Rollie pollies and all of the boys are named ash and the girls are named serrena. I think they are shy and they are so cute! My name is katerina And i am 8
My name is Sophia I an 9 I am in forth grade I have a pet Rollie Pollie named Rollie he likes to eat seallery and paper he is really cute I like to bring him to school and when I go places he is amazing pet I love ROLLIE !!!!!!!!!!!😍😍😍😍❤️❤️😎😎👍🏻👩🏽🏡💙💛💜💕💝🇺🇸
I have one rolly poly named Bob. My rolly poly likes tiny little pieces of nachos and cheese puffs. I like him. My name is Amelia and I’m 4 and a half.