Springtails

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Tiny six-legged arthropods with a specialized forked structure beneath their abdomen that allows them to leap when released
2. Small invertebrate creatures found in soil and leaf litter, characterized by a spring-like tail mechanism they use to propel themselves through the air
3. Minute terrestrial arthropods equipped with a coiled abdominal appendage that unfolds suddenly to catapult the animal into the air

Etymology: Springtails are tiny wingless arthropods that leap by flicking a forked tail-like appendage (the furcula) tucked under the abdomen, which snaps against the ground and launches them into the air. The name is a plain compound: "spring" in the sense of a sudden jump, and "tail," the body appendage that does the jumping. Plural of "springtail," a compound noun formed from two English words. The insects were given the name in the nineteenth century, when naturalists studying them under the microscope noticed this leaping mechanism and described it in English terms. Earlier they were often lumped in with other small wingless creatures, so the name reflects a fairly recent act of description rather than an old folk term.

Synonyms: collembola