RA or springtails

[Bigbux82]

Can someone tell me what these are?? Pics on google seem very inconclusive.
Magnification is around 200x on USB scope. They are on bottom of my promix pots. I noticed them after watering, butthey seem way too small to be springtails. Any help would be much appreesh.

 

[Bigbux82]

I have videos too that are really good, but I didn't want to put them up on youtube as its connected to other things I'd rather keep separate..I'll try to think of something and get em up.

 

[Bigbux82]

https://vidd.me/oR5

 

[Bigbux82]

anybody???
I realize people will probably say soil mites, but they clearly appear to have 6 legs soooooo....??

 

[watts]

looks like springtails to me

 

[HidingInTheHaze]

They are not springtails, they kind of look like they could be hypoaspis miles

 

[Bigbux82]

All mites have to have 8 legs tho i thought? I only see 6 legs and 2 antennea inn the video I think.

 

[LyryC]

hypoaspis miles

 

[LyryC]

Any of them tan/brownish? You should be able to seem them with your bare eye

Any of them tan/brownish? You should be able to seem them with your bare eye

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=287540

 

[LyryC]

springtails bounce around - and are good.

hypoaspis miles eat fungi and fungus gnats also good.

you are probably good man. they look like pupae stage hypoaspis miles

 

[medicalmj]

Springtails can move their body in a way that mites cannot. That is, they can independently move their head, thorax and abdomen in a way that allows the body to appear to bend.

A soil mite will have a rigid turtle like movement and its body (called an idiosoma) looks like one oval shape. On a soil mite head (called a gnathosoma) there will be the mouth, which is basically a pair of chelicerae ( often pincer Like ) and paired palps (or pedipalps) which are leg like appendages either side of the mouth-parts. The idiosoma (main body) bears four pairs of legs in the vast majority of species, although young mites often start with only three pairs, whilst gall mites have only two pairs.

So this should help you in you assessment of whether its an insect or arachnid.

Also, I don't think those two appendages are antennae I think they are legs(or palps). From what I can see, which is not clear enough to be certain, is that they are not protruding from the head(but if from head they are palps if the rest of the body is not in two distinct parts, the thorax and abdomen) as would be in a spring-tail, rather from the body (idiosoma). Next, what is the movement type? Can it "bend"?

 

[medicalmj]

All mites have to have 8 legs tho i thought? I only see 6 legs and 2 antennea inn the video I think.

I posted this in a longer reply, but no not always, many will only have three sets of visible legs early on.

 

[Bigbux82]

Ive been calling them mites, thinking everyone was mistyping! I'm an idiot...but it does say they are arachnids...so just curious about the 6 legs vs. 8 legs thing.

 

[Bigbux82]

Im sorry, I didnt refresh before posting. Thank you all for the help

 

[Bigbux82]

View Image View Image

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=287540

Yes..I just found one brownish one that was larger on each soil tray and many smaller white ones. It's like each tray had its own bigger, brown king or something. I have pics...will get them up shortly. Also, while waiting for confirmation I decided to Imid half of the soil plants. LADA(21% Imid). I'm about to find out the results. I'm also battling cyclamen mite eggs on all leaves so I thought the systemic action of Imid would help with that even if the soil mites are not harmful. Plants have not been as healthy as they should be. So, trying to tell if its mite toxins or RAs or both has been a really enjoyable experience. Thx again to all for help

 

[Holdin']

Hey Bigbux82 - I'm pretty sure I had the same exact critters in my soil at one point. I first noticed them in my runoff/in saucers after watering as a very tiny white speck. I was having phantom issues and was pulling my hair out trying to figure out what was going on as well as trying to ID those critters.

It's a long story, but to make it short, I never ID'd or even came close to IDing what they really were, nonetheless the cause of my issues, or whether or not there was a connection.

I can tell you... they are not RA or springtails, and I also believe they are a mite. I also had H. Miles in abundance at that time... and these are not H. Miles.

My theory is... they were after a bad fungus/bacteria that was causing root damage, hence my phantom problems, or they were feasting on decaying matter. And... I never saw a correlation between their population and extent of my problems... I never witnessed them feasting on roots under the scope, and the potato slice test never attracted any critters. Honestly one day they just up and disappeared. Also, the phantom issues also disappeared... which were never really devestating, always manageable, just seemed as though my ladies always needed extra attention to maintain good health.

I have some pics in my albums of the specimen in question... I'll find them later on when I'm off a mobile device.

 

[Bigbux82]

Cool thx for sharing. I;d like to see the pics. I have had random root issues too. Mostly in hydro, but my soil roots could be better too.

 

[Holdin']

Here's one... I thought I had more but can't seem to find them, but it's a good look at a specimen.

That's 1mm scale. Each dash is .05mm... very small little fucker. Body is about .25mm and total length just under .5mm.

Hard to say if they are indeed the same species by comparing pics, certainly a similarity. But there are so many fucking species of soil mites... could even be undocumented. I gave up on a successful ID.

Have you seen them in your hydro setup?

 

[medicalmj]

Ive been calling them mites, thinking everyone was mistyping! I'm an idiot...but it does say they are arachnids...so just curious about the 6 legs vs. 8 legs thing.

Your right, they appear to be a mite, which is in the arachnid class.

The soil mite(s) you have fall within the sub class of acari or acarina and are of the superorder of Acariformes. It's within this super order that contains the 30,000 named species that include dust mites, spider mites, your soil mite, scabbies and more.

Your soil mite is in the order of Sarcoptiformes, with very high probabilty of Oribatida as the suborder. Ther are at least 1200 species within the Oribatida suborder.

Also, I must add that I was using outdated info on springtails...
Collembolans (common name "springtails") are generally 0.2-5.0 mm in length. Collembolans are now NOT considered to be insects, although they share a common ancestor.