springtail - Lepidocyrtus cyaneus

Lepidocyrtus cyaneus

That's great! I wasn't expecting a species level id on one of these. Thanks again Frans.

… tom murray, 6 March, 2007 - 2:58pm

Lepidocyrtus cyaneus

As an educated guess:
Indeed Lepidocyrtus is a difficult group to ID at species level. Lepidocyrtus is divided in several subgenera e.g. based on the abscence or presence of scales on the antennae and legs. In this specimen there is no iridisation on the antennae and legs. This suggests there are no scales. Then we can conclude this specimen belongs to the subgenus Lanocyrtus.
Given the blue iridisation it might be Lepidocyrtus (Lanocyrtus) cyaneus. This is confirmed by the fact that the 3rd antennal segment is a bit shorter then the second (not well visible in all 3 pictures).

… Frans Janssens, 6 March, 2007 - 4:10am

Thanks Frans

The Lepidocyrtus must be a difficult genus to get to species because of the small size, and lack of sharp detail.

… tom murray, 5 March, 2007 - 3:36pm

Lepidocyrtus sp.

… Frans Janssens, 5 March, 2007 - 4:19am