A scientific name for a class of tiny arthropods, commonly called springtails, that are found almost everywhere on Earth and have a special jumping appendage.
From Greek kolla (glue) + membrana (membrane). The name refers to the 'collophore,' a glue-like structure these creatures possess. Named in the 1870s by scientists studying their unique anatomy and behavior.
Springtails (collembola) are so abundant that in a single handful of forest soil there can be thousands of them—they outnumber all other animals in some ecosystems—yet most people have never heard of them because they're smaller than a grain of rice!
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