About Springtails (collembola)
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They are arthropods, who have a spring-loaded jumping organ that allows them to “hyperspace” jump up and away from predators.
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They help build healthy soils by grazing on fungi, bacteria, and decaying matter, and by turning these into nutrients that plants can eat through their roots.
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The “earthy scent” that often occurs after it rains is due to a symbiotic relationship that one type bacteria (streptomyces) have formed with springtails. The bacteria creates the scent to attract springtails, who help the bacteria by spreading their spores (kind of like seeds) throughout the soil where new colonies can grow. The springtails are rewarded by a meal of bacteria, who are in the last stages of their lives when they are producing their spores.
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Fossilized springtails have been discovered in amber, clinging to the bodies of flying insects, causing scientists to believe that this is one method they used to travel and populate most types of terrestrial environments.
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They come in many types and colors, but they are so small and are often underground, so you might not ever see them. If you want to see others – including purple, orange, iridescent and varigated varieties – look them up by their scientific name collembola, or follow the hashtag in social media #collembola
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They are beneficial and not harmful to humans, even though they get bad press on the internet. Perhaps due to pest removal companies who would like to scare you into believing they are pests and might bite humans – not true!