Abstract text Despite the growing concern about the potencial adverse effects of POPs in the environment and despite the fact that several POPs can be found in soils at significant concentrations, only a few toxicity data are available for terrestrial invertebrates. Therefore, acute and chronic toxicity of selected priority POPs was assessed for the springtail Folsomia candida using the standard ISO test protocol. Toxaphene (chlorinated pesticide), short chain chlorinated paraffin (industrial chemical) and three azaarenes (industrial by-products) were chosen as model POPs. Toxaphene was the most toxic of all tested compounds (the 28-day EC50 for the reproduction was 5.87 mg/kg). Similar and also higher concentration of this pesticide has been reported at some fields in the world. Quinoline was the most toxic azaarene (the 28-day EC50 for the reproduction was 230 mg/kg). The effects of short chain chlorinated paraffin were found in concentrations with little environmental relevancy (the 28-day EC50 for the reproduction was 1230 mg/kg). The F. candida was confirmed as suitable and practical for testing of various POPs. This research was supported by Grant Agency of Czech Republic 525/04/P159.