Homidia

Börner, 1906

springtails

Species Guides

Homidia is a of springtails (Collembola: Entomobryidae) comprising 84 described worldwide, with 71% of species (60) recorded from China. The genus is distinguished by specific morphological features including inner spines at the base of the dens, a bidentate mucro with a much larger subapical tooth, eyebrow-like macrochaetae formations on the part of the fourth abdominal segment, and absence of . Colour pattern and chaetotaxy serve as important diagnostic characters for species identification.

Homidia sauteri by (c) skitterbug, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by skitterbug. Used under a CC-BY license.

Homidia socia 152423568 by Will Kuhn. Used under a CC BY 4.0 license.

Homidia socia by Yannkemper. Used under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Homidia: /hɔːˈmɪdiə/

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Identification

Distinguished from other Entomobryidae by the combination of: inner spines at the base of the dens; a row of macrochaetae in eyebrow-like formation on the part of abdominal segment IV; a bidentate mucro with the subapical tooth much larger than the tooth; and complete absence of . Colour pattern and chaetotaxy are critical for -level identification. Smooth post-labial occur in some species and represent a diagnostic character.

Images

Habitat

Leaf litter in forest , primarily in mountainous regions. Documented elevations range from 682 m to 1,626 m above sea level.

Distribution

Center of diversity in East Asia, with 60 of 84 (71%) occurring in China. Additional records from: Korean Peninsula (16 species), Japan (14), Vietnam (7), United States (6), Taiwan (6), India (2), Thailand (2), Bangladesh, Indonesia (Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi), Malaya, and Singapore (1 each). Within China, highest diversity in Zhejiang Province (22 species), followed by Jiangxi, Fujian, and Guangxi (7 each).

Ecological Role

Decomposer in leaf litter .