Lably
Skip to content

Machilidae

Family of jumping bristletails

  • 4 min read
  • 3 chapters

Related on Lably

Through Insect, Thorax and Scale (zoology)

Lab · Class 3Insects Around UsLabWho Lives Where?LabAnimals & Their SoundsLabMy Animal Friends

Machilids undergo virtually no metamorphosis during their life cycles, and both nymphs and adults are generally inconspicuous herbivores and scavengers. Many species are restricted to rocky shorelines, but some are found in well-vegetated habitats inland. They can move very fast and often escape by jumping considerable distances when disturbed.

Like all Archaeognatha, machilids transfer sperm indirectly from male to female. Some species can spin silken threads that lead the female to the spermatophore. Other species can produce silken stalks on which they place droplets of sperm.

There are no aquatic species, but some littoral forms, such as Parapetrobius and Petrobius, can swim.

Their fossil records extends back into the Triassic with the genus Gigamachilis from the Middle Triassic of Italy and Switzerland, around 240 million years old.

Distribution and habitat

Members of the family Machilidae are primarily terrestrial insects inhabiting a wide range of moist, sheltered microhabitats. They are most commonly found among leaf litter, under stones, beneath loose bark, in rock crevices, and within accumulations of organic detritus, where they feed on algae, lichens, and decaying plant material. Many species occur in open, sun-exposed environments such as rocky outcrops, coastal cliffs, dunes, and scree slopes, while others inhabit forest floors and woodland margins. Some taxa are synanthropic and may occur on stone walls, rooftops, or other man-made substrates that provide suitable crevices and biofilm growth.

Machilidae has a broad, nearly cosmopolitan distribution, with species recorded from all biogeographic regions except Antarctica. The family is especially diverse in temperate and Mediterranean climates, where numerous genera are associated with xeric, rocky habitats. In tropical regions, representatives occur in montane and shaded environments as well as in coastal zones. Both continental and insular faunas are known, including species endemic to oceanic islands. Overall distribution patterns reflect the family’s preference for microhabitats that combine surface stability, shelter from desiccation, and the presence of algal or lichen growth.

Sign in to keep reading

2 more chapters are free with a Lably account.

More in Animals

Monotypic taxonTaxonomic group with only one subordinate taxonSpecies descriptionFormal description of a discovered speciesParaphylyType of taxonomic groupIUCN Red ListInventory of the global conservation status of biological speciesSubtropicsGeographic and climate zoneCommon nameName generally used for a taxon, group of taxa or organism(s)