Ptenothrix delongi
| Ptenothrix delongi | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Clade: | Pancrustacea |
| Class: | Collembola |
| Order: | Symphypleona |
| Family: | Dicyrtomidae |
| Genus: | Ptenothrix |
| Species: | P. delongi |
| Binomial name | |
| Ptenothrix delongi (Christiansen & Bellinger, 1981) | |
Ptenothrix delongi is a species of globular springtail found in North America and Mexico[1][2][3][4][5][6]
Appearance
[edit]In winter coloring, P. delongi has distinct brown polygonal patterns on a yellow background color, while in summer it tends to be much lighter, sometimes completely yellow. It is also quite large at around 2 mm (0.079 in). The sides were mistaken for Ptenothrix maculosa, which it was misidentified as until late 2024, when a group of citizen scientists used microscopy to confirm the species' existence and its differences to the other.[1][3][7][8][9][10]
Some of the yellows are almost completely patternless, or just have a line down the middle.[11][12][13]
Similar species
[edit]The main reason this species was misidentified as both Ptenothrix maculosa and Ptenothrix beta in the past was that it has only a side pattern to the photo on collembola.org, with no dorsal view, and no antenna. The result was that Ptenothrix delongi was commonly identified wrongly as Ptenothrix maculosa for over five years, before microscopy was performed on these springtails in 2024, that keyed out to Ptenothrix delongi.[2][7][3][1][14][5]
one form of this species was mistakenly considered to be Ptenothrix maculosa ssp Olympiana along with a separate completely yet to described species.[5][15]
Original Discription
[edit]this species was described by Christiansen and Bellinger in 1981 as Dicyrtoma delongi[1][16] some outdated sources still use this old name which adds to confusion when looking for resources around this species.[16]
The first ever specimen of this species was discovered in Los Angeles, California.[17] the second was found in Mexico.[18]
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References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 "Ptenothrix delongi (Christiansen & Bellinger, 1981)". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
- 1 2 "Checklist of the Collembola: Ptenothricinae". collembola.org. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
- 1 2 3 "Visually identifying Ptenothrix beta". Ptenothrix. 2025-07-13. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
- ↑ Palacios-Vargas, José (2013-09-17). "Biodiversidad de Collembola (Hexapoda: Entognatha) en México". Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad. 85. doi:10.7550/rmb.32713. ISSN 2007-8706. Archived from the original on 2021-07-15.
- 1 2 3 "Mesofauna of the Pacific Coast". sites.google.com. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
- ↑ CONABIO. "(Ptenothrix delongi)". EncicloVida (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 2026-08-05.
- 1 2 "The mistaken identity of Ptenothrix maculosa". Ptenothrix. 2025-07-15. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
- ↑ "Ptenothrix maculosa: Identification, Facts, and Taxonomy". Bugs With Mike. 2026-04-25. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
- ↑ "Mesofauna of the Pacific Coast". sites.google.com. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
- ↑ "Marine Species Traits - Ptenothrix delongi (Christiansen & Bellinger, 1981)". www.marinespecies.org. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
- ↑ "Occurrence Detail 5230183652". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
- ↑ "Occurrence Detail 5238120330". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
- ↑ "Occurrence Detail 5935891467". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
- ↑ "Occurrence Detail 5134207587". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-01-05.
- ↑ "Ptenothrix delongi (Christiansen & Bellinger, 1981)". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-08-10.
- 1 2 "Vertebrate and Invertebrate Species Codes: Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Program" (PDF). 2006.
{{cite web}}:|first=missing|last=(help) - ↑ "Dicyrtoma delongi Christiansen & Bellinger, 1981". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
- ↑ "Dicyrtoma delongi". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
External links
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