Deep litter or soil dwelling species like Onychiurus and Hypogastrura have short legs and antenna, a short or absent furcula, no collophore and may be eyeless. These traits allow the deep litter and soil dwelling species to slip easily through the pores in the soil or between closely packed leaf layers. A third distinctive group of collembolans have globe-shaped abdomens as seen in Dicyrtoma . These species are usually found in grassy habitats. The immature Collembola look like the adults, but lack reproductive organs.
Reproduction is repeated over the span of several years and occurs in aggregations.
Somehow molting helps to synchronize these aggregations. The eggs hatch in response to warm temperatures, restricting hatching to spring and summer. We would like to thank Ernest Bernard, at the University of Tennessee, for the identifications. All the mistakes are our responsibility. Collembola anatomy Collembola exhibit three different body types.