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Hi all, This may seem like a weird topic but I wanted to ask here because this keeps happening occasionally and I am unsure of what the cause behind it is and whether this could be of any concern. When going through my fossil collection, whether it be putting new specimens up for display, looking through my collection, dusting pieces off, moving them, etc. I occasionally see small translucent white bugs slowly scuttling across the surface of them, I believe that these are springtails as that seems like the only plausible organism to be found there that also has that appearance and body shape. I personally have no issue with the bugs, I like springtails, I think they're fascinating organisms and somewhat cute even. My question is where could all of them be coming from? My understanding is that they primarily feed on fungi and need lots of moisture to thrive, I understand maybe finding a couple of them a few days after pulling fossils fresh from the ground, but some of these seem to come out weeks or even months after these fossils have been laying on my shelves with little to no contact with fresher specimens. My display area is kept clean and dry so I really have no idea where they could bee coming from, is this any cause for concern? Has anyone else experienced anything like this? Thanks for looking and any replies, Misha
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Springtails are tiny insects that may have hitched a ride on flying insects to disperse as suggested by a miocene amber fossil. https://m.phys.org/news/2019-11-million-year-old-fossil-springtails-hitchhiking-winged.html