'Conglobation in the pill bug, Armadillidium vulgare, as a water conservation mechanism'. Animal behavior desk reference: a dictionary of animal behavior, ecology, and evolution (2nd ed.). ^ 'Pill millipede ( Glomeris marginata)'.'Isopod Distribution and Climate Change'. ^ Spyros Sfenthourakis & Hornung Elisabeth (2018).Kaufman Field Guide to Nature of New England. ^ Kenn Kaufman & Kimberly Kaufman (2012).They will also eat shed snakeskin and dead bugs, if necessary. Some species of pill bugs are known to eat decaying animal flesh or feces. Pill bugs will feed on numerous crop plants including corn, beans, squash, peas, melon, chard, beet, cucumber, potato, spinach, lettuce, and strawberry, with potential for significant yield loss in strawberry in particular. Pill bugs can be serious pests in certain agricultural systems, particularly in areas that are prone to heavy rains and flood conditions. Pill bugs will also eat living plants, especially in wet conditions, sometimes consuming leaves, stems, shoots, roots, tubers, and fruits. The diet of pill bugs is largely made up of decaying or decomposed plant matter such as leaves, and to a lesser extent, wood fibers. It may be triggered by stimuli such as vibrations or pressure, and is a key defense against predation it may also reduce respiratory water losses. This behaviour is shared with pill millipedes (which are often confused with pill bugs), armadillos, and cuckoo wasps. Pill bugs in the family Armadillidiidae are able to form their bodies into a ball shape, in a process known as conglobation. The best-known species, Armadillidium vulgare, was introduced to New England in the early 19th century and has become widespread throughout North America. Most species are native to the Mediterranean Basin, while a few species have wider European distributions.

Other common names include slaters, potato bugs, butchy boys and doodle bugs.

This ability gives woodlice in this family their common names of pill bugs or roly polies. Unlike members of some other woodlice families, members of this family can roll into a ball, an ability they share with the outwardly similar but unrelated pill millipedes and other animals. An Armadillidium granulatum in various stages of conglobulation, i.e., 'rolling up'Īrmadillidiidae is a family of woodlice, a terrestrial crustacean group in the order Isopoda.

Doodlebug definition