Table 1.

Species traits used in the analyses, their definitions and rationale, and the range of values of each trait for the species observed in samples

Trait	Definition	Ecological rationale	Range of values or categories
Body length	Maximum length from head to tip of abdomen (in mm)	Connected to dispersal ability, life form, ecophysiologya, b	0.5–5.4
Antennal to body length ratio	Antenna length divided by body length	Assumed to be linked to “sensory ability” and active dispersalc	0.1–0.7
Life form	Trait complex composed of number of ommatidia, length of springtail, and intensity of colorationd	Proxy for vertical stratification, ecophysiology and dispersal abilityb	Epigeic (1)* Hemiedaphic (0.5) Euedaphic (0)
Moisture preference	Level of soil moisture content the species is mostly associated withe	Ability to tolerate high or low soil moisture contentsf	Xerophile (0) Xero-mesophile (0.25) Mesophile (0.5) Meso-hygrophile (0.75) Hygrophile (1)
Habitat width	Number of habitat types in which the species has been found	Tolerance to environmental fluctuations, identifies generalists and specialists	1–9

* Epigeic surface-dwelling, hemiedaphic litter-dwelling, euedaphic soil-dwelling

References: ^aBerg et al. (1998); ^b Ponge et al.( 2006); ^c Martins da Silva et al. (2012); ^d Gisin (1943); ^e Kuznetsova (2003); ^f Makkonen et al. (2011)