Hypogastrura nivicola
Snow Fleas are not fleas
at all, but a type of insect called a springtail.
Springtails get their name because they have two long things
that look like tails sticking from their abdomen
(back body section). The "tails" can fold under the body and
are held by two hooks under the body. When the springtail
releases the hooks, the insect goes flying in the
air. Snow Fleas are very
small, about 1/16 inch long. They are dark blue, have short
antennae,
and have two eye clusters (with 16 eyes in each). Snow Fleas, and other
springtails, live in soil, leaf
litter,
mosses,
fungi,
and along shores of ponds. Sometimes they can be found on
the surface of ponds. Since they are so light, they can walk
on the surface without sinking. They eat old dead plant
matter,
bacteria,
fungi, algae,
pollen,
roudworms, rotifers, and sap.
Roundworms and rotifers are tiny microscopic
animals. Snow Fleas mate in the
Spring, and the females lay eggs in the soil. Tiny
springtails are born, which are called nymphs.
Nymphs do not look exactly like adult
Snow Fleas.
Cofrin Arboretum Center for Biodiversity, University of Wisconsin - Green Bay: http:www.4gb.edu/biodiversity