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Bitumen extraction via surface mining has affected nearly 1000 km² of boreal forest habitat in the Athabasca oil sands region of Alberta, Canada, pushing entire ecosystems back to the primary stages of forest and soil succession. Previous work in the Athabasca oil sands region has investigated the influence of vegetation, mineral reclamation material, and peat cover soil on microbial communities and the quality of soil carbon. No research has been conducted to assess the bioindicator potential of soil fauna, specifically oribatid mites, in these reclaimed soils. This study investigated the influence of time-since-reclamation (8–31 yrs.) and canopy type (white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides, Michx)) on the abundance and diversity of oribatid mite adults ≥300 μm in size after land reclamation in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region. Thickness of the forest floor accumulating …