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How to identify it
- UC IPM puts them at about 1/16 inch; Penn State says most that get into homes are 1 to 2 mm, with species ranging from 0.2 to 10 mm, and Clemson says most are 1 to 2 mm and usually under 6 mm.[1][2][6]
- Adults are often whitish, bluish or dark gray to black, but some species are yellow, red, orange, purple or mottled. Young look like adults, only smaller and paler.[1][2][7]
- A forked, tail-like spring folded under the abdomen flings them into the air when disturbed: UC IPM says up to several inches, Penn State up to 100 times their body length.[1][2][7]
- Most are slender and elongated, though one group is round and stout. They have no wings and, though six-legged, are now classed apart from insects in their own group, Collembola.[3][6][7]
Look-alikes
Where it lives
Found in soil, especially compost-rich soil, leaf litter, organic mulch and under bark or decaying wood; indoors in sinks, tubs, floor drains, damp basements, crawl spaces, wall voids and houseplant soil.[1]
Biology and life cycle
They feed on decaying plant material, fungi, molds and algae, and lay eggs in moist soil with lots of organic matter. Penn State says numbers can reach 100,000 per cubic meter of leaf litter, mulch or damp thatch.[1][2][6]
When it gets dry outdoors they search for moisture, entering through screens, doors, vents and potted plants, and may gather on walls in huge numbers after a hot day; indoors they soon die unless they find moisture. Penn State adds that prolonged, saturating rains can also drive them out of the soil and into homes.[1][2][6]
In humid homes with mold, Penn State says springtails can keep an indoor population going, especially in bathrooms and basements and inside the walls of new homes that got soaked before they were closed in.[2]
Most often seen in spring and early summer, but year-round in moist places.[1]
They don't go through metamorphosis; they keep molting even after maturity, from as few as 4 molts in some species to more than 50 in others.[6][7]
Snow fleas are springtails that stay active in freezing weather thanks to an antifreeze-like protein. Penn State and Minnesota name Hypogastrura nivicola; the Missouri Department of Conservation lists both H. nivicola and H. harveyi. They show up by the hundreds on melting snow on warm, sunny days in late winter and early spring, and Penn State says this is more common in or next to wooded areas.[4][3][2][7]
Damage and signs
- Some species chew tiny pits or holes in the roots and leaves of seedlings, which may wilt and die, but mature plants aren't significantly harmed and UC IPM says control is rarely needed.[1][3][6]
- They can coat a pool's surface when they fall in and drown; pool filters and skimmers remove them, and Clemson notes they can be a nuisance in pool drains.[1][6]
Health risk
Springtails don't bite or sting and are harmless to people and animals.[1][3]
Control
Prevention
Dry things out: fix leaks, air out damp areas with fans, a dehumidifier or air conditioning, let potted plant soil dry between waterings, and dry out low, wet spots near the foundation or in the crawl space. Clemson says reducing moisture often cuts numbers within a few days.[1][2][6]
Keep them out
Repair torn screens and seal gaps under doors, around windows, pipes and vents with caulk, weatherstripping, fine screen or foam.[1]
Sanitation
Remove excess mulch and wet leaves from around the foundation, don't overwater mulched plants, and make sure downspouts carry water away from the foundation.[1][3]
Traps and physical control
Sweep or vacuum springtails that get inside, repeating as needed, and wash those in sinks and tubs down the drain.[1][3]
Pesticides
Sources agree sprays aren't the answer indoors. UC IPM says insecticide sprays are often no better than vacuuming and give only temporary relief unless moisture is fixed, and Minnesota says pesticides aren't effective against springtails and shouldn't be used inside. Penn State and Clemson say a perimeter treatment of the foundation can help when they keep invading, though Clemson warns it breaks down quickly in moist conditions.[1][3][2][6]
More from the research literature
Antifreeze proteins purified from the snow flea Hypogastrura harveyi turned out to be glycine-rich and very different from other known antifreeze proteins, including two from insects, which suggests springtails evolved their freeze protection independently.[8]
In California lettuce trials, the springtail Protaphorura fimata fed on lettuce seeds and germinating seedlings, leaving more seeds ungerminated and more seedlings injured than in arenas without springtails.[9]
Common questions
- Are these tiny jumping bugs fleas?
- If they're in a damp sink, tub, drain or plant pot and nobody is getting bitten, they're likely springtails, which jump like fleas but don't bite.[1][3]
- What are the tiny black bugs jumping on the snow?
- They are snow fleas, a springtail that comes up on melting snow on mild days in late winter and early spring. South Dakota State says they are harmless and only a nuisance if they get indoors.[4][3]
- Why won't springtails go away after spraying?
- Because the moisture that draws them is still there. Insecticides give only temporary relief; drying out the area is what clears them.[1][6]
Sources
- University of California Statewide IPM Program, “Springtails (Pest Notes, Home and Landscape).” ipm.ucanr.edu/home-and-landscape/springtails/ (accessed 2026-11-11)
- Penn State Extension, “Springtails.” extension.psu.edu/springtails (accessed 2026-11-11)
- University of Minnesota Extension, “Springtails (household insects).” extension.umn.edu/household-insects/springtails (accessed 2026-11-11)
- South Dakota State University Extension, “What are those black bugs jumping on the snow?.” extension.sdstate.edu/what-are-those-black-bugs-jumping-snow (accessed 2026-11-11)
- iNaturalist, “Entomobrya taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/171448 (accessed 2026-11-11)
- Clemson Cooperative Extension Home & Garden Information Center, “Springtails (Collembola) in South Carolina: Identification and Management (HGIC 2445).” hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/springtails/ (accessed 2026-11-11)
- Missouri Department of Conservation, “Field Guide: Springtails.” mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/springtails (accessed 2026-11-11)
- Science, via PubMed, “Graham LA, Davies PL (2005), Glycine-rich antifreeze proteins from snow fleas, Science 310(5747):461.” pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16239469/ (accessed 2026-11-11). Cited from the PubMed abstract.
- Journal of Economic Entomology, via PubMed, “Joseph SV, Bettiga C, Ramirez C, Soto-Adames FN (2015), Evidence of Protaphorura fimata (Collembola: Poduromorpha: Onychiuridae) feeding on germinating lettuce in the Salinas Valley of California, Journal of Economic Entomology 108(1).” pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26470124/ (accessed 2026-11-11). Cited from the PubMed abstract.