COLLEMBOLA > SYMPHYPLEONA > Dicyrtomidae > Dicyrtominae

Although the name may imply that this is the smallest species in the genus, that's not necessarily true, as larger specimens can be encountered that are bigger than some Dicyrtomina ornata.   

They are small though, averaging just under 3mm long, but they do tend to stand out more than any other globular species as they are typically a bright pale gold colour with very little pigmentation other than the long, narrow maroon streak on the rear of the abdomen. I'm not sure why, but the 'key' describes the colour as blue.

A further diagnostic feature that I've come across to help separate Dicyrtomina minuta from pale Dicyrtomina ornata with only feint pigmentation, is that in Dicyrtomina minuta there should be a visible midfacial pigmented band between the eyes.

Other than that, they have the classic globular body shape and distinguishing features, such as the very short fourth antennal segment, that are shared with other members of the family.

As with so many other springtail species, Dicyrtomina minuta is described as being both very common and widespread despite the extremely poor occurrence records on the NBN Atlas database and, for what it's worth, none of those records have come from my area; either from Dorset (VC9) or South Hampshire (VC11).