[ID] Woodlouse: Cylisticus convexus?

[Jason Green]

Hi all,

I'm just going through a backlog of woodlice images I've taken thus far, and have the Famous Five. I now have a possible juvenile Curly Woodlouse Cylisticus convexus too... or not? It may be a young someone else, but the shape of the dark mid-line and warm yellow outer-sides look OK...

July 2009?

Curly woodlouse?

Thanks for sparing the time to read this!

Take care,

Jason

[Acutipuerilis]

Can't really see from this angle, Jason, but I'm pretty sure it's not. I had Cylisticus recently at one of our museum sites, and it's quite distinctive. The most striking thing is prehaps the relatively long caudal spikes (can't remember the technical term! ), but Cylisticus is also very rounded in cross-section - the tergites don't flare outwards at the tips. Not sure what it is, though...

[Jason Claxton]

I can't see enough detail really either to key it out ,Jason.All I can ask is whether you saw the underside.As Cylisticus convexus is one of only two U.K species to have five pairs of pleopodal lungs.The other is Trachelipus rathkei.

[Jason Green]

Thanks both! It was on a log at the edge of grassland. It was small from what I remember, so is Platyarthrus hoffmannseggi a possibility based on small size and colour?

This is the only shot I have, unfortunately. No recollection of looking at the underside. Probably unidentifiable then!

Note to self: Retain more images!

[Jason Claxton]

Not that either Jason,Platyarthrus hoffmannseggi is blind with no ocelli.