creatures of the soil

illustrations by Emily Faccini

springtail - Collembola

Busy soil recyclers – eats decaying plants, fungi and microbes.

MOSS PIGLETS or WATER BEARS – Tardigrada

Named by Italian biologist Lazzaro Spallanzani as ‘tardigrada’ meaning ‘slow walker’, they feast on microscopic organisms in the soil and are able to survive radiation.

MILLIPEDE – Diplodoba

Recycling nutrients in the soil by night.

DUNG BEETLE – Scarabaeus viettei

A dung beetles walks into a bar… Is this stool taken?

DUNG BEETLES – Scarabaeus viettei

Under threat from chemical farming, they recycle dung into the soil, feeding and aerating it.

WOODLOUSE – Oniscus asellus

These compost kings feed on rotting wood and decaying plant matter.

EARTHWORMS – Lumbricus terrestris

The intestines of the soil.