A few weeks ago I blogged about skeletons in the woods and a few days ago, whilst clearing the drains after heavy rain, I found another!

This skeleton belonged to a woodlouse. Instead of having their skeleton on the inside, woodlice have a shell-like exoskeleton. The problem with this is that as they grow, they need to shed this exoskeleton. They do this one half at a time, with the back being lost first and the front a few days later.

Woodlice are crustaceans, so are more closely related to crabs and shrimp, than bugs found on land. This explains why they normally inhabit damp places such as the drains at the Visitor Centre.

There are several species of woodlice. This one looks like the species Porcellio scaber which loves to feed on green algae.

Bye for now,

Rhian – Seasonal Ranger