I made a closed terrarium about a couple months ago. As the temperature rose, a few dozens of these guys showed up in the jar.
Let me share some of their characteristics I've observed:
- They're as big as a grain of sand or smaller. Definitely less than 1mm. Maybe 10-100um?
- They have antenna. It's hard to see on the video, but if you look closely, they got two on their heads.
- The ones I've observed are on the upper region of the 2L jar (on the glass), where the lid is. Maybe seeking for air? I can't tell if they're on the soil, too, because it's hard to notice them on there (crazy camouflage). And when they get on the moss, it was near impossible to notice them.
- Not so jumpy. I heard the springtails can be jumpy. So I tapped the glass several times on different occasions. 9 out of 10 didn't even flinch. One of them did disappear from my sight. I'm assuming it jumped? Or fell? Not so sure.
- Contents of the jar (where it could have come from): dead wood barks (most likely), mosses, soil, plants -all from a mountain. I did soak everything in a boiling hot water before the setup – but they managed to survive that.
I was expecting some insect activities, because I didn't quarantine any of the things I put in (on purpose).
The only thing I'm worried about is if these guys are going to completely take over my terrarium or kill everything else that is not them.
I would love to hear your opinions, or if you have come across these guys before.
Thank you in advance for taking a look!
by uryung
4 Comments
Looks like a mite. There are many kinds of mites, many are detritivores like springtails, and shouldn’t cause any issues. Some can be harmful to other creatures in the enclosure, like isopods, reptiles, or amphibians. If you find them swarming on any of your creatures, they are likely predatory or parasitic mites, which you will have to treat for, but if they’re just kinda hanging out walking around they’re likely detritivores.
good practice is usually to bake the soil in the oven for 20-30 mins at 100’C
It’s a globular springtail, very lucky to have these! 🙂
That is in fact a springtail known as the globular springtail. They come in many many colors. Lucky day! 💚 Oh, not all of them jump all the time. Some are definitely more jumpy than others. One sure fire way to know is put some on water. If they pull a Jesus? Springtails. This is definitely without a doubt a globular springtail. I’m always trying to culture my locals. 😂