I’ve been taking pictures of springtails for quite a long time but I’ve realized I have no clue how they are identified past genus or even subfamilies. I do have a good microscope which has a macro setting, if I were to collect springtail specimens and photo them via microscope, what specifically would I need to get in the photos?
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Great to hear you’re interested in springtails! The vast majority of springtails require microscopy for a proper ID. This, can be quite the endeavour for a beginner, I for one can attest to that! A tip for finding loads of springtails:
- To find springtails (and various other organisms), you can use any lid or tray with a bit of a “lip,” and slide it along the ground at about walking pace. This spooks springtails, and they’ll jump and get scooped up, allowing for a huge variety to be collected.
Speaking of which, you can just pop a vial over them (any size works), and sometimes they’ll jump in. Or you can lightly bump the springtail so it jumps. You can also pick up less-jumpy springtails with a thin stick or something similar and place them into the vial. Often what I do is just pop the vial onto the lid or tray, slightly curve the lid, and tap the underside so they’re obliged to walk or jump in easily. Then you can pour in isopropyl alcohol or ethanol (the latter preserves a bit longer), filling it about a third of the way (or whatever amount you feel necessary), which will quickly and humanely subdue the springtail for examination. Note that freezing will not work well for springtails, it easily ruins delicate features, and many springtails are able to withstand freezing tempetures for long periods of time.
When it comes to microscopy:
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A compound microscope so we can view everything in detail, you’ll mostly be using the 40x objective, but a 100x immersion oil objective is sometimes needed.
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Some pipettes (I use cheap, disposable pipettes, and just reuse them since I’m cheap).
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One of the most important things for microscopy is clearing the specimen. This is required to properly see characteristics that would otherwise be obscured. You could use Lactic acid, Potasium Hydroxide, or Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH). If using the latter, about 1M concentration—a good balance between effective strength and not being too toxic, should work. Although, as with any chemical, great caution should be taken. You can mix it yourself with water—always add the chemical to water, not the other way around, or it will splatter everywhere. Or you can get it already premixed to save the time and risks of mixing it.
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Some slides. Concave slides are nice, so one doesn’t accidentally crush the specimen under the coverslip.
Alrighty, now that (some of) the basic equipment is listed, my process usually goes something like:
- Photograph the springtail before collecting, so we can associate habitus with the resulting microscopy.
- Collect in a 2ml vial (bigger probably would work better, but it’s all I have).
- Proceed to forget about the specimen for a week (or more) sitting on my desk.
- Finally get around to clearing the specimen. This usually takes between 30 minutes to all the way up to a few hours, though if using slower clearing agents such as lactic acid, this may take several hours to a day. When finished clearing, dark pigment should be a light pink, and everything else nice and (mostly) transparent.
- Pipette it to a concave slide, and slowly put the slide cover on at an angle, to reduce bubbles.
- Examine and photograph everything thoroughly, whilst following keys (best to start from family, even if you’re pretty sure on genus).
Now when it comes to keys, this really depends where you live. I can recommend some keys if you tell me your continent/country. Hope that helps! And feel free to ask any more questions you might have, I’m happy to answer. :)
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And seeing that you live in North America, here is a good key:
The Collembola of North America by Kenneth Christiansen and Peter Bellinger, often called C&B. Here are the volumes:
(Hypogastruridae and Neanuridae) Vol. 1: https://grinnell.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/delivery/01GCL_INST:GCL/12313110750004641
(Onychiuroidea and Isotomidae) Vol. 2: https://grinnell.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/delivery/01GCL_INST:GCL/12313110740004641
(Entomobryomorpha) Vol. 3:
https://grinnell.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/delivery/01GCL_INST:GCL/12313110730004641
(Globular springtails) Vol. 4:
https://grinnell.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/delivery/01GCL_INST:GCL/12313110720004641
An important note: those books follow an extremely out-of-date taxonomy, and most subgenera have now been elevated to genera, as well as subfamilies elevated to families. And of course, it may take a while to learn all the terminology and everything—I’m still learning new things as I go.
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not the OP but i found this really useful, thank you! regarding:
what habitats do you recommend targeting? my understanding is a lot of springtails live in leaflitter, is that a good place to focus on? if so would i be skimming the surface of the leaflitter with the tray or scooping below it?
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I know nothing about springtail ID, but I wanted to share this profile of springtail identifier alexis_orion I wrote: https://www.inaturalist.org/blog/108055-identifer-profile-alexis_orion
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While it’s true springtails do like leaf litter, it’s possible to find them in just about every habitat imaginable. This method was actually meant to be used in grass/low vegetation, and for leaf litter, I usually just grab a handful and shake it so any springtails and other organisms fall off.
Also, a great way to find Isotomurus and other genera, is to slide the tray along sand.
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And “panning” shrubby gravel can be good for finding Fasciosminthurus quinquefasciatus and Garden springtails. Good luck @el_nutcase!
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