View allAll Photos Tagged springtail
I´m pretty sure this is a very tiny version of the spatulosminthurus nr lesnei which I posted last.
Another that I think is Dicyrtomina saundersi. Such lovely little creatures... little being the operative word. I know Springtails aren't technically quite insects, or at least not considered to be by everyone. They are delightful things to watch anyway.
One from today; a large mature individual ~1.2 mm. Frans is speculating that there may be two distinct groups; Group 1 where abd.6 in adults is pale, and Group 2 where abd.6 in adults is dark. This is a mature Group 2 individual.
[Part of a garden survey of the "novel" springtail Katiannidae Genus nov.1 sp. nov. that I'm doing for FransJanssens@www.collembola.org to establish the size and differences between the various instars.
Canon MP-E65mm Macro (at 5x) + 1.4x tele-extender + 25mm extension tube + diffused MT24-EX Twinlite flash. Cropped.]
Springtail bundle on a little puddle of water. on the compost bin lid. They actually sail around on the surface with the slightest breeze.
My target species for the day, and this was the last that we saw on the day. These are soooo tiny the photo does not do it justice, I really needed the MPE-65, will take it next time! A further selection from Messingham on 20/3/19, some great macro out in the sun!
Another crop of springtail photo www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/46972023562/in/dateposted/ for Frans - three rear ends
Well, there's really not much around at the moment, but if you look hard enough, there's always some springtails.
This was on the underside of a piece of wood and didn't seem to want to dash off. I managed six images that I combined in Zerene Stacker. It didn't move a hair!
[Thanks Eddie and Frans (and others) for correcting my fundamental ID error!]
Finally observed today mature males! However no courtship, the males did not seem interested in the pretty females observed. :))
I've been trying track down my springtail, in amongst all the baby S. aquaticus. There were a few like this with very strong pigmentation so I'm thinking not aquaticus, or S. malmgreni, as I only ever found one S. malmgreni and the distribution of these one was about the same as the adult S. nr bifidus... Well, they've got to be somewhere and these little ones are the only ones that don't look like aquaticus!
Crop of 11:1
I noticed these tiny fragments floating in small pools of melted snow, on closer inspection, they were actually moving - took a short video clip
Springtail - Dicyrtomina ornata
© 2012 Monique van Someren * all rights reserved * please do not use without permission
Springtails come in many different shapes and sizes. They are all associated with moist environments, and when they are discovered indoors, it is always the result of a problem with standing water, a leak or rotting wood. For some detailed information about Collembola see: www.collembola.org/
A Globular springtail on water with some pink card providing the colour. Taken around x4 life size at f8.
Radio controlled springtail. This springtail had the longest vertical hair on it's bum I have ever seen. Unfortunately it sprang before I completed the focus stack
Here's a selection of globular springtails, found today in our Staffordshire garden and the local area.
1. Dicyrtomina saundersi
2. Sminthurides aquaticus -
3. Katiannidae Genus nov1. sp. nov. - Female
4. Calvatomina nr superba. Juvenile - feeding instar (dark gut contents).
Canon MP-E65mm Macro (at 5x) + 1.4x tele-extender + 25mm extension tube + diffused MT24-EX Twinlite flash. Cropped.
One of the pleasures of getting a half-decent springtail shot is that it's somewhat challenging. Included in the challenges are :
- they are very small; often less than 0.5mm;
- at high magnifications, it's very hard to locate them through the viewfinder;
- they rarely keep still;
- they're prone to "springing" away when disturbed.
Because they are also very prone to desiccation, they prefer the underside of leaves etc., rather than the top. Once exposed to daylight, they invariably start walking. I assume that this behaviour has developed because before long, it will bring them to the edge of the object and allow them to disappear back underneath.
The images (instantly recognisable to springtail photographers) show two typical springtail scenarios, once you've finally tracked them down; half-hidden behind the edge of a leaf, or just disappearing under it!
The globular springtails are a pale form Sminthurinus igniceps (L), and Sminthurinus aureus (R).