Leaf Litter Search
Summary:
Students explore and identify small insects that
often go unnoticed in leaf-litter. Tiny beetle larvae and
springtails can be found along with pill bugs, millipedes,
centipedes, and more!
Grade Level: K to 6th
Duration: 1 hour
Indoor/ Outdoor/ Both:
Objectives/ Standards:
The students will…
 Find and identify small animals in leaf litter.
 Discuss what role these animals play in the ecosystem.
Background:
Many organisms live in leaf litter (the leaves, twigs, and other debris that
falls onto the forest floor). Most of these animals are decomposers.
Decomposers are extremely important-they break down dead material in to
nutrients, which can be used again by living things (such as trees or flowers).
Pill bugs and sow bugs are actually small crustaceans
(relatives of shrimp) that live in leaf-litter and humus and
Feed on decaying organic matter. Unlike insects, they
have 14 legs and breathe with primitive gills!
Springtails are minute, wingless insects that get their name from the fact
that they have an unusual tail-like structure (called a furcula) which is folded
forward under the abdomen when at rest. When the furcula is released, it
thrusts downward and backward against the substrate, allowing the springtail
to jump considerable distances! A springtail 5-6 mm in length can jump 75100 mm and floating springtails can even jump on water! Many springtails are
beautifully colored (white, gray, yellow, orange, metallic green, lavender, red)
but, because these insects are so small, this detail goes unnoticed by the
general public. Because they jump, students will likely think they are “fleas.”
The usual habitat of these small insects is in soil of woodlands, in decaying
vegetative matter, or on the surface of stagnant water. For the most part they
are innocuous creatures and are seldom even noticed. Most soil-inhabiting
springtails and sow bugs feed on decaying plant material, fungi and bacteria,
and thrive in an environment that is moist or high in humidity. Because they
infest decaying organic matter, they can infest soil of potted plants and
become a nuisance in greenhouses or mushroom cellars. They do not injure
living plants.
Because these insects do not cause any real injury, persons faced with a
springtail infestation should try to reduce the population by eliminating
Essential
moisture Questions:
and humidity in the area that they are found. Outside, they cause no
problem
and
are are
an important
component
of the ecosystem.
Fordo?
a quick kill
 Decomposers
extremely
important-what
do they
of
existing
populations,
a
single
spray
treatment
should
do
the
job;
 What happens to materials recycled by decomposers? anything
containing Cypermethrin will work. However, eliminating the conditions that
 cause
Can nutrients
be used again?
an indoor infestation
(usually in bathrooms, laundry rooms, garages)
 will
__________________________________________
quickly reduce their numbers.
Vocabulary/Terms:
 Leaf litter
 Debris
 Decomposers
 Crustaceans
 Springtails
Materials:
o Insect field guides
o Lens boxes or
magnifying glasses
o Leaf litter
o Colored pencils
o Colored paper
o Plastic cups
o Newspaper, if
activity is done
inside.
Notes:
Autumn is the best
time for this
activity.
springtail
4H Junior Wildlife Stewards (2008)
Set-up:
Before you start this activity, find a safe outdoors area where there is leaf litter on the
ground, or collect some and bring it in to the group. (It shouldn’t be more than a few hours old,
or the creatures may migrate to the bottom of the garbage bag or other collecting device.)
Procedure:
Explain that everyone has a home. Even decomposers. Decomposers are bugs and
insects that munch on dead material and release nutrients. Ask children where they think
decomposers live. Explain that it’s easiest to find decomposers among the land of the dead
(dead leaves that is!). Invite children to look for these very important creatures.
Notes:
The Activity:
1. Divide children in teams of two or three. Give each team a
magnifying glass or lens box, some newspaper, colored pencils,
paper plastic glasses, and a bag to collect leaf litter. Take teams to a
safe area with trees and forest debris to collect a pile of leaf litter.
Look through the pile outside or if going inside, once inside, instruct
teams to spread out the newspaper and then dump some of the leaf
litter on top.
2. Ask teams to gently search their leaves for living things. Explain
that it may take several minutes before teams locate a decomposer.
Encourage them to keep looking. When they find an insect,
arthropod, or other creature, they can use their pencil and gently
put it into the plastic cup for further study. One or all of the team
members can sketch the animal.
3. Teams also can look through field guides to try and identify the
creatures they’ve drawn. Ask teams:
 What kind of creature did you find?
 Was it eating something?
 Where did it come from?
 Did you find other bugs or insects?
 What else do you think the animals used the leaves for?
 What role does the animal play in the forest?
 What else can you tell me about it?
4. Ask teams to share their pictures, You may wish to hang them
around the room.
5. Be sure to return the animals to the leaf litter. If teams are indoors,
put the leaf litter back outside when you’re through. Explain why it’s
important to put the materials back outside (creatures can go back
to their lives; nutrients can be released into the soil).
4H Junior Wildlife Stewards (2008)