At our feet
They are less than one millimetre long and can be found everywhere from the freezing high slopes of Mount Everest to the stifling darkness of a cave nearly two kilometres below the earth’s surface. Their fossilised ancestors have been discovered in 410 million year old rock. And, for the last eight of those 410 million years, they have had a very special place in the heart of macro photographer, mesofauna portraitist and UK native Andy Murray.
‘Springtails (Collembola) are diverse, complex, often intensely colourful, incredibly endearing and very tiny soil animals,’ Andy writes on his website “A Chaos of Delight”. ‘They aid with nutrient cycling in the soil, helping to form soil microstructure as well as being a ready supply of food for many predators.’
‘It's hard not to anthropomorphise Collembola, especially the Symphypleona, the globular springtails who as their name suggests, are rounded rather than elongated or flattened. They look cute and chubby, often with big, black eye patches and a tendency to turn their heads upwards, as if they were looking back.’
While he declares that ‘it’s no secret that Collembola are my beloved favourite amongst the myriad of different soil
