Woodlouse Variants.

From the Horned British King variety to it’s Far Eastern ancestor ….. the Giant species of Woodlouse, whilst being a crustacean from the monophyletic suborder Oniscidea within the isopods, is still an enigma of sorts, given the large seafood like meat yield somewhat akin to Emperor Lobster and King Crab, have always been revered but nonetheless hunted to near extinction.

The large ‘Butter Gland’ (common to all orders) located in the lower Pleon that inevitably ruptures when the creature is subject to stress, only led to the demise of huge numbers in the Edo period throughout the Japanese islands ….. sadly, wild stocks of these naturally aggressive and territorial strains never really recovered.