Species Composition, Vertical Distribution and Seasonal Variation of Collembola in Hilltop and Foothill of Darjeeling Himalaya, West Bengal, India

Despite the environmental importance of Collembola, basic information on the occurrence and ecology of these soil micro-arthropods is lacking, especially in Darjeeling Himalaya. To address such gaps the present research was conducted with objectives to determine what Collembola species inhabit the soil of two different altitudinal sites of Darjeeling Himalaya as well as their vertical distribution and seasonal variations. Altogether 22 species of Collembola belonging to three families were recorded from the hilltop and foothill sites of the Darjeeling Himalaya. The maximum number of collembolan species was found in foothill site (20 species) than in the hilltop site (10 species) of Darjeeling Himalaya. The population density of Collembola marked a significant decrease from upper most layers to deeper layers of soil. The highest collembolan density was recorded during the spring season in both the sites but lowest density was recorded during summer at Hilltop site and during autumn at Foothill site of Darjeeling Himalaya.