Ella Diers, Editor-in-Chief

Saturday night. Midnight. The air was filled with music blasting from various houses on campus, people talking loudly and laughing, people cheering. I, myself, was on a walk around campus, too tired to engage in festivities but nonetheless wanting to revel in the warmth.  

The warm spring weather in Wisconsin means students are finally coming out of their hovels and celebrating outside once again. It also means the arrival of wildlife back on campus. On my walk, I stopped near Pearsons and noticed a bunch of insects by the steps: some little roly-polies crawling around. Depending on where you live, you might know them as different names: pill bug, potato bug, doodlebug—they’re all the same guy. And they’re all awesome. 

The pill bug is not an insect, though it looks like one (even I got it confused with an insect—oops!). They’re arthropods, the overarching phylum that describes insects, arachnids, and crustaceans. Pill bugs are an order of crustacean called isopods, and their Latin name is Armadillidiidae (think armadillo!). This comes from the way they can roll up into a little ball, and what makes them so recognizable. 

These curly little guys eat essentially plants, both dead and alive. They are also found to eat poop (#yum), dead animals (#delish), and also dead bugs (#cannibalism). Their diet helps them break down material in ecosystems, which helps to recycle nutrients and carbon in the soil. They’re pretty chill like that. 

Unfortunately, they do also loveeeee to eat crops (ho behavior). This has caused problems, especially in places like Southern Australia, where these guys are an absolute menace.

I am not, however, living in Southern Australia, and so for me it was lovely to see a dozen of these guys scurrying around. The way they roll up, and the way they scuttle around on their 14 legs—it’s just cool, man. 

Next time you see a pill bug, give him a kiss. I swear he won’t be mad.

Featured Image Credit: University of Florida