Faunistic Inventory of the Collembological Fauna from Belezma Forest Massif, Batna, Algeria

Several samples taken from green oak (Quercus ilex) litter in the Belezma forest massif located in the town of Ain Kerrouche (Batna, Algeria). From a set of 8380 individuals collected, the identification to species level revealed the presence of 47 springtails. All species found were already reported in Algeria, but all are new records for the Belezma region. Species belonging to four known orders of Collembola, 13 families and 29 genera were documented. The predominance of the Entomobryomorpha with 21 species and 11 genera is a remarkable characteristic of this Collembola fauna. These results provide new perspectives for the knowledge of the Collembola fauna in Algeria particularly in Batna, indicating that this fauna is still poorly understood and requires further exploration.