Androniscus dentiger Verhoeff, 1908

Common name

Rosy Woodlouse

Synonyms

Androniscus roseus sensu auct. Brit. not C.L.Koch, 1837
Androniscus weberi Verhoeff, 1908

Status

GB IUCN status: Least Concern

ID Difficulty

2

Identification

Although variable in colour, in life it is usually bright orange or salmon pink, but body pigment is rapidly lost in alcohol.  The entire body is covered in coarse tubercles, easily seen with a hand lens, and the eye is composed of a single black ommatidium.
 
Immatures may be mistaken for Trichoniscoides spp. (which have a reddish ocelli that fades in alcohol) and the coastal Miktoniscus patiencei (which has a white body).
Keith Lugg
Bill Urwin
J.P. Richards
J.P. Richards
R.E. Jones
Keith Lugg

Distribution and Habitat

A common woodlouse across much of lowland Britain and Ireland.
 
It is equally at home in semi-natural coastal habitats, such as sparsely vegetated shingle, boulder beaches or erosion banks, and synanthropic sites including churchyards, gardens, waste ground, farmyards, etc.
 
It can be found in a wide array of microsites, but often on the underside of large stones or amongst rubble.
 
This summary is based on the detailed account in Gregory (2009).

Distribution

Reference

Gregory, S. (2009) Woodlice and Waterlice (Isopoda: Oniscidea & Asellota) in Britain and Ireland.  Field Studies Council/Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.

idBmigTaxa

72

BRC Code

Cru_1067