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Nonbiting midges PHYLUM: Arthropoda » CLASS: Insecta » ORDER: Diptera » FAMILY: Chironomidae SIZE: 0.059–1.18" (1.5 mm–3 cm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: These larval flies are decomposers, helping to recycle plant debris. DESCRIPTION: Larvae are legless but have two fleshy prolegs behind the head. Many adults are small and resemble mosquitoes without biting mouthparts, and their wings […]

Soil is a living, dynamic habitat for a great diversity of animals and plants. It supports the global carbon and nitrogen cycles. Healthy soils sequester carbon, helping to mitigate climate change. Likewise, the vegetation, organic matter, and good structure associated with healthy soils is a sponge for water, absorbing, filtering, and releasing it gradually over […]

In terms of biomass and species diversity, vertebrate animals are the smallest portion of soil life. Some species live entirely in the soil, while most are in the soil for a portion of their life. Across North America, a diversity of vertebrate animals are part of the underground soil world: toads, salamanders, skinks, snakes, turtles, […]

Ants PHYLUM: Arthropoda » CLASS: Insecta » ORDER: Hymenoptera » FAMILY: Formicidae SIZE: 0.04–0.98" (1–25 mm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: Ants are among the most significant insect groups in soil. They move a great deal of soil and influence soil structure, and they are predators of small invertebrates. Ants are also important seed dispersers. DESCRIPTION: Ants are […]

Fireflies PHYLUM: Arthropoda » CLASS: Insecta » ORDER: Coleoptera » FAMILY: Lampyridae SIZE: 0.2–0.78" (5–20 mm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: Fireflies are predators in soil systems. DESCRIPTION: Adults have soft, leathery wing covers—typically black with red or pale-brown markings—and have light-producing segments near the end of their abdomen. Female fireflies have shorter wings and fewer luminous segments […]

Silverfish PHYLUM: Arthropoda » CLASS: Insecta » ORDER: Zygentoma SIZE: 0.39–0.59" (10–15 mm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: Silverfish are decomposers, but the extent of their ecological role is not fully understood. DESCRIPTION: Silverfish are wingless, with flat, wide bodies covered in silvery scales. They are brown or gray in color. Eyes are small or absent, but they […]

Woodlice (sowbugs and pillbugs) PHYLUM: Arthropoda » SUBPHYLUM: Crustacea » CLASS: Malacostraca » ORDER: Isopoda » SUBORDER: Oniscidea SIZE: 0.2–0.59" (5–15 mm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: Woodlice are primary decomposers and contribute significantly to decomposition by fragmenting fresh plant debris, which allows mites, springtails, potworms and bacteria to continue the process of forming humus. As detritivores, they […]

Earthworms PHYLUM: Annelida » CLASS: Oligochaeta » ORDER: Opisthopora SIZE: 0.39–15.7" (1–40 cm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: Earthworms are often the most familiar of the soil fauna, and they are also among the most important. Earthworms influence soil structure through their burrowing activities—some can burrow as deep as 8' (2.4 m)—and fragment and bury organic matter, mixing […]

Mites PHYLUM: Arthropoda » CLASS: Arachnida » SUBCLASS: Acari » ORDERS: Mesostigmata, Oribatida SIZE: 0.0024–0.2" (60 µm–5 mm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: Mites are critical in soil food webs as decomposers and predators. Particularly important in their role as detritivores, oribatid mites break down leaf litter into pieces accessible to smaller decomposers. Mites are also agents of […]

Rotifers PHYLUM: Rotifera ｠ CLASS: Bdelloidea SIZE: 0.0039–0.12" (0.1–3 mm). ECOLOGICAL ROLE: Rotifers are predators and scavengers. DESCRIPTION: Since rotifers are so small, only a few features are recognizable under a microscope. These features include crowns of cilia on their heads that whirl in circular patterns and are used in swimming and in filter feeding, […]