Chapter IX 

 CRUSTACEA AND ARACHNIDA 



CRUSTACEA 



(Order ANASPIDACEA, see Appendix B, p. 561.) 



Order ISOPODA 



Family ONISCOIDA 



Porcellio scaber, Latreille. Wood Louse 



THIS species, which originally belonged to the more temperate 

 regions of Europe, but has been introduced accidentally by man to 

 nearly all the temperate regions of the world, must have reached 

 New Zealand at an early date, for it was recorded in White's list of 

 New Zealand Crustacea in the British Museum in 1847 as P. graniger. 

 It is now common all over the Dominion, especially in greenhouses 

 and other places near dwellings, but also further from habitations, 

 though not (according to Dr Chilton) in the untouched native bush. 



Mr W. W. Smith states that the wood lice have largely displaced 

 native ants. He says (1901): 



In several parts of this district (Ashburton) the wood-lice have almost 

 displaced the native ants. Instead of finding great numbers of ants' nests, 

 as formerly, under the half-embedded stones, we found their old homes 

 tenanted by swarms of wood-lice. 



Armadillidium vulgare, Latreille 



Another European species that has been dispersed by artificial 

 means to all temperate regions. In New Zealand it is known from 

 Nelson, where it appears to be common in the town gardens ; from 

 Mount Egmont (exact locality not known) ; and from Sumner, where 

 it is common in some gardens. The date of its introduction into New 

 Zealand is unknown, but it was established in Nelson before 1890. 



Metoponorthus pruinosus, Brandt 



Dr Chilton says "a species common in Europe and neighbouring 

 countries in rather warmer climates than the two preceding. Also 

 widely dispersed into the warmer portions of the world. Specimens 

 from Tasmania in the British Museum were named Porcellio zea- 

 landicus by White in his list, published in 1847, and a similar speci- 

 men from New Zealand was obtained in 1854 (^ ut not described till 

 1876, in Miers' Catalogue of New Zealand Crustacea), so that it must 

 have been introduced before that date, perhaps by whaling ships. It 



