FEEDING STUDIES ON ONYCHIURUS-ARCTICUS (TULLBERG) (COLLEMBOLA, ONYCHIURIDAE) ON WEST SPITSBERGEN

The feeding biology of the arctic collembolan Onychiurus arcticus (Tul lberg) is described from West Spitsbergen, based on a combination of g ut content analyses for field collected and microcosm-living animals, together with laboratory feeding trials. There was wide variation in t he food items consumed by individual animals, reflecting the wide choi ce available in the environment. Most animals fed predominantly on liv ing and dead bryophytes, detritus and to a lesser extent algal cells. Laboratory trials showed that 0. arcticus feeds as a herbivore on a ra nge of bryophyte species. The presence of dense aggregations below bir d cliffs and elsewhere may reflect the distribution of particularly fa vourable microenvironments.