Bristletails
Order Microcoryphia
The Bristletails (Order Microcoryphia) includes 19 species across 2 families and 8 genera in our directory.
About Bristletails
Microcoryphia (jumping bristletails) includes ~500 described species. These are among the most primitive living insects - they are wingless, have an arched body, and can jump up to 30cm using their tail-like appendage.
Economic Impact
Jumping bristletails have no economic impact. They are valuable to entomologists as living fossils - representing the most ancestral body plan of any living insect group, dating back ~390 million years.
Ecological Role
Bristletails feed on algae, lichens, and decaying plant material on rock surfaces and in leaf litter. They are primarily nocturnal and are preyed upon by spiders and ground beetles.
Families in Microcoryphia (2)
Species in Microcoryphia (19)
Pedetontus (s.str.) saltator
Pedetontus saltator
member of the nominate subgenus (5 spp. in our area, all but one in CA-OR)
Trigoniophthalmus alternatus
Trigoniophthalmus alternatus
Identification: In ne. US, this is the only species with small, nearly triangular lateral ocelli. North American population is parthenogenetic
Hypomachilodes forthaysi
Hypomachilodes forthaysi
Machilinus helicopalpus
Machilinus helicopalpus
Machilinus kleinenbergi
Machilinus kleinenbergi
Machilinus rupestris
Machilinus rupestris
Machilinus zingiberus
Machilinus zingiberus
Machiloides heegi
Machiloides heegi
Machiloides hickmani
Machiloides hickmani
Machiloides obscurus
Machiloides obscurus
Machiloides obsoletus
Machiloides obsoletus
Hypomachilodes texanus
Hypomachilodes texanus
Machilinus aurantiacus
Machilinus aurantiacus
Machiloides banksi
Machiloides banksi
Peninsula Bristletail
Machiloides silvestrii
Petridiobius arcticus
Petridiobius arcticus
Petrobius brevistylus
Petrobius brevistylus
Shore Bristletail
Petrobius maritimus
Western Sea Bristletail
Petrobius brevistylis