r/Springtail

Hear me out though! I have a big mat of crystalwort floating on the surface. I bought some semi Aquatic springtails for a very shallow java moss enclosure I keep juvenile newts in and this afternoon I realized these bad boys can jump on water! I feed powdered shrimp food for my baby shrimp so I have a decent amount of food on top so I went for it and we'll see how they do! Right now they're hanging out on the tubing (top of the frame). I bet with their ability to get out of the water if they get into it, these would do well in a lot of tanks with floating plants as long as you make sure there is food.

I added springtails and then I saw a boom of these. I thought they were springtails at first but now I don't think so. They devoured all of my roaches food and are moving to other enclosures and places. Please help

It wont let me add a second picture but hopefully this is enough to identify. They just seem a little to big to be springtail eggs

I have temperate whites in my isopod enclosure but I noticed that these guys were on the cucumber when I removed it. Just wanna make sure they're nothing crazy :)

Hi so i just made these decoration with airdry clay and acrylics and will be putting them inside my terrarium. Will my springtails be okay?

I have had this colony for a while now and have noticed the slime is turning like a greyish brown in some areas. Even when I place it on the cork bark in their enclosure they make these gross patches that are unsightly.

Is there something off with the substrate? Should I do a substrate change?

When I first got them the slime would make beautiful patterns on the cork bark and move around more, but it has stopped doing that.

I am looking to make a cute little terrarium for them and will create an area with slate rocks to feed them on in the front so I can remove it when it gets nasty.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

I am not very knowledgeable when it comes to the spikey springtails or the slime mould. I have multiple slime moulds in different petri dishes and some in bigger tubs so I can also feed it to my isopods from time to time. I also have had some of the cultures go off and like having backups ready to give my spikeys a constant food source. Not sure if I'm over doing it with the slime mould and if the slime mould does something to the substrate like make it acidic or something. Could this be a moisture issue?

Rambutanura springtails really like to hang out on live sphagnum moss. Are they eating it or just loving the moisture?

There are like over 100 I swear!!

I just needed to share my joy :3

Are these critters Springtails, or something else? (Sorry about the video quality). They are super tiny.

A carpet of Yuukianura aphoruroides… with a few unwanted guests 👀
At first glance, this culture looks pretty great – basically a living carpet of Yuukianura aphoruroides (“Yuukis”). 🟠
But if you look closely, you’ll notice a few white tropical springtails running between them.
A good reminder of just how easily cultures can become mixed.
In my case, the reason was surprisingly simple: one ventilation opening wasn’t properly secured, and unfortunately this culture was sitting right next to an open terrarium containing those exact white springtails. 😅
Apparently, that was enough.
The Yuuki colony itself is doing extremely well, but I wouldn’t consider this particular culture “clean” anymore.
That’s also why I keep multiple independent cultures of important species and regularly check them for unwanted hitchhikers. It’s something I’m putting a lot of emphasis on with my TerraNidus cultures.
A huge colony is impressive – but keeping cultures clean and correctly separated is just as important.
Lesson learned: check your ventilation, don’t underestimate wandering springtails, and always keep backup cultures. 😅

Who else thinks this feller is super cute?

Anyways, I did my best on the videography, I'm sorry for the quality. What do y'all think?

Just another snake, mom asking, what type of bug this is...

My ball python, had made a number two and when I went to clean it out, it was covered and a bunch of tiny little bugs that I did not add to the tank.

I grabbed a piece of substrate to take photos through a plastic bag and I'd like to apologize for how gross my nails look.