The
order Poduromorpha is one of the three main groups of
springtail
Springtails (Collembola) form the largest of the three lineages of modern hexapods that are no longer considered insects (the other two are the Protura and Diplura). Although the three orders are sometimes grouped together in a class called Ento ...
s (Collembola), tiny
hexapods related to
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
s. This group was formerly treated as a
superfamily Poduroidea.
They can be best distinguished from the other springtail groups by their body shape. The
Symphypleona
The order Symphypleona is one of the three main groups of springtails (Collembola), tiny hexapods related to insects. When the springtails were still believed to be an order of insects, the Symphypleona were ranked as a suborder.
They can be ...
are very round animals, almost spherical and the abdominal segments are not visible.
Both
Entomobryomorpha
The Entomobryomorpha are one of the three main groups ( order) of springtails (Collembola), tiny hexapods related to insects. This group was formerly treated as a superfamily, the Entomobryoidea.
They can be best distinguished from the other ...
and Poduromorpha are long springtails with six visible abdominal segments. While Entomobryomorpha have the first thorax segment reduced, Poduromorpha retain all three.
The Poduromorpha also tend to have short legs and a plump body, but more oval in shape than the Symphypleona. Their name means ‘foot tail formed’, deriving from their short, flat,
furcula
The (Latin for "little fork") or wishbone is a forked bone found in most birds and some species of non-avian dinosaurs, and is formed by the fusion of the two pink
clavicles. In birds, its primary function is in the strengthening of the thoracic ...
.
Systematics
The Poduromorpha were, as Poduroidea, united with the
Entomobryomorpha
The Entomobryomorpha are one of the three main groups ( order) of springtails (Collembola), tiny hexapods related to insects. This group was formerly treated as a superfamily, the Entomobryoidea.
They can be best distinguished from the other ...
(then called Entomobryoidea) in a group called "Arthropleona", but this has more recently turned out to be
paraphyletic
In taxonomy (general), taxonomy, a group is paraphyletic if it consists of the group's most recent common ancestor, last common ancestor and most of its descendants, excluding a few Monophyly, monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be pa ...
. Actually the Entomobryomorpha, the Poduromorpha, and the third springtail lineage – the
Symphypleona
The order Symphypleona is one of the three main groups of springtails (Collembola), tiny hexapods related to insects. When the springtails were still believed to be an order of insects, the Symphypleona were ranked as a suborder.
They can be ...
– are equally distinct from each other. Their treatment at equal
taxonomic rank
In biological classification, taxonomic rank is the relative level of a group of organisms (a taxon) in an ancestral or hereditary hierarchy. A common system consists of species, genus, family (biology), family, order (biology), order, class (b ...
reflects this. Their rank has also varied a bit. When the springtails were still believed to be an order of insects, the "Arthropleona" and the Symphypleona were treated as
suborders.
[See references in Haaramo (2008).]
List of families
Includes
fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
families.
Superfamily Neanuroidea
* Family
Brachystomellidae
Brachystomellidae is a family of springtails in the order Poduromorpha. There are about 9 genera in Brachystomellidae.
Genera
These nine genera belong to the family Brachystomellidae:
* '' Bonetella'' Stach, 1949
* '' Brachygastrura'' Rapoport, ...
* Family
Neanuridae
The family Neanuridae contains pudgy short-legged springtails of the order Poduromorpha. It was established by Carl Börner in 1901.
Systematics
There are six subfamilies currently recognized:
* Caputanurininae
* Frieseinae
* Morulininae
* ...
* Family
Odontellidae
Superfamily Poduroidea
* Family
Poduridae
Poduridae is a small family of stout-bodied springtails containing only the single genus ''Podura'', and making up the monotypic superfamily Poduroidea. The genus contains four species:
*''Podura aquatica
''Podura aquatica'', the water spring ...
Superfamily Hypogastruroidea
* Family
Hypogastruridae
* Family
Pachytullbergiidae
Pachytullbergiidae is a family of springtails in the order Poduromorpha. There are at least two genera and four described species in Pachytullbergiidae.
Genera
These two genera belong to the family Pachytullbergiidae:
* '' Pachytullbergia'' Bon ...
* Family
Paleotullbergiidae
''Paleotullbergia'' is a genus of springtails in the family Paleotullbergiidae, the sole genus of the family. Its only species is ''Paleotullbergia primigenia'', found in Africa.
References
Further reading
*
Poduromorpha
Springtail ge ...
Superfamily Gulgastruroidea
* Family
Gulgastruridae
''Gulgastrura'' is a genus of springtails in the family Gulgastruridae. It is the sole genus of the family Gulgastruridae, and ''Gulgastrura reticulosa'' is its only species. It was discovered in 1966, in a limestone cave in Korea
Kor ...
Superfamily Onychiuroidea
* Family
Onychiuridae
* Family
Tullbergiidae
Tullbergiidae is a family of springtails in the order Poduromorpha. There are more than 30 genera and 120 described species in Tullbergiidae.
Genera
These 34 genera belong to the family Tullbergiidae:
* '' Ameritulla''
* '' Anaphorura'' de Iza ...
Superfamily Isotogastruroidea
* Family
Isotogastruridae
Footnotes
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1935420
Arthropod orders