Collembola are found on all continents and in virtually all habitats – from deserts to the Arctic tundra. Collembola particularly appear in great densities in the Arctic, up to 100.000 per m2. Collembola mostly live on fungal hypha in the soil, but also graze on bacteria and nematodes. Collembola are often used in ecotoxicological studies of various environmental toxins and pesticides. We use collembolan as model animals in studies on climatic stress, particularly drought.
