Neelidae Explained

Neelidae is a family of springtails in the order Neelipleona. There are at least 4 genera and more than 30 described species in Neelidae.

Genera

These four genera belong to the family Neelidae:

• Megalothorax Willem, 1900
• Neelides Caroli, 1912
• Neelus Folsom, 1896
• Zelandothorax Delamare Debouteville & Massoud, 1963

Description

Members of the family Neelidae are generally minute, averaging around 500 μm. They possess globular bodies superficially like that of the Symphypleona, with relatively long legs and a well-developed furca compared to other soil-dwelling springtails.^[1]

Phylogeny

Neelidae was initially considered to have a close affinity with Symphypleona, based on morphological characteristics shared between the two groups such as a globular shape, neosminthuroid setae and others. However, molecular data places them as a basal group to all other Collembola.^[2]

Further reading

• Effects of transgenic herbicide-resistant soybean varieties and systems on surface-active springtails (Entognatha: Collembola). 2002. Bitzer . Royce J.. Buckelew . Lamar D.. Pedigo . Larry P.. Environmental Entomology. 31. 3. 449–461. 10.1603/0046-225X-31.3.449. 85984909.

Notes and References

1. Schneider . C. . Zon . S. D. . D'Haese . C. A. . Megalothorax laevis (Neelipleona, Neelidae): Account of a neglected springtail widely distributed in the intertropical zone . International Journal of Tropical Insect Science . September 2018 . 38 . 3 . 168–191 . 10.1017/S1742758418000024. 90165716 .
2. Ma . Yao . Huang . Cheng-Wang . Luan . Yun-Xia . Chen . Wan-Jun . The mitochondrial genome of a minute springtail species Megalothorax incertus (Collembola: Neelipleona: Neelidae) . Mitochondrial DNA Part B . 3 August 2021 . 6 . 8 . 2430–2432 . 10.1080/23802359.2021.1955637 . 34350357 . 8291067 .