Interactive Tiny World

Tiny world

Springtail

Orchesella cincta

A tiny six-legged jumper with a forked spring folded under its tail.

Real size
About 4mm long
Where
On moss, under bark and in leaf litter

My spotter's list

Here it is following your pointer, drawn many times bigger than life. Find it at real size with the magnifying glass in the Tiny World.

Good to know

Three things about the springtail

Tucked under its tail is a forked spring. When it lets go, the springtail is flung into the air, many times its own length.

There can be tens of thousands of springtails in a single square metre of woodland soil.

They eat fungi and rotting plants, which helps turn dead leaves back into soil.

The real thing

Photos of the springtail

Springtail, photo 1
Photo: Andy Murray, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Springtail, photo 2
Photo: AJC1 from UK, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Springtail, photo 3
Photo: AJC1 from UK, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Out and about

How to spot one

Lift a damp log or a flowerpot and look for tiny specks that jump when disturbed. A hand lens shows the antennae and the pale band.

Lend a hand

How to help

Leave leaf litter, compost and dead wood in place. Springtails are a key part of how they turn back into soil.

Keep going

More from the Tiny World

Velvet mite Water bear False scorpion Aphids Money spider Bark beetle Baby snail

‹ Baby snailBack to Tiny worldA to ZVelvet mite ›

Following youLadybird