Predation of Notiophilus (Coleoptera: Carabidae) on Collembola as a predator-prey teaching model

The carabid beetle Notiophilus preys readily on the collembolan Folsomia Candida Willem in very simple experimental conditions. Some features of this predator-prey system are outlined to emphasize its use as a teaching practical. Experiments with another potential collembolan prey, Onychiurus burmeisteri (Lubbock), are described in the context of developing the method for more advanced studies.