The introduction of behavioural aspects of soil animals in ecological risk assessment would allow us to better assess soil quality, all the more if a range of animal populations are considered. We compared the avoidance behaviour of several strains of springtails (Arthropoda: Collembola) obtained from different soils. Naphthalene, a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), widely represented in soils polluted with hydrocarbons, was tested in aqueous solutions on nine springtail species issuing from four sites. Fine quartz sand saturated with an aqueous solution of naphthalene was avoided by most of the tested species, avoidance being, however, detected down to a concentration of 0.030 mg L(-1). Folsomia candida (Isotomidae) was shown to be relatively tolerant to pollutants compared to other Collembola such as Mesaphorura macrochaeta, Mesaphorura yosii (Onychiuridae), Parisotoma notabilis (Isotomidae) and Arrhopalites caecus (Arrhopalitidae). Differences between strains could not be explained by properties of the original soils.