Content
Under the name of Mites is grouped to a very large collection of tiny arachnids (barely a few millimeters long), which are among the oldest known land creatures, since there are fossils almost 400 million years old.
Distributed in both terrestrial and marine habitats, as well as in urban and domestic contexts, they are mostly predators and parasites, although there are variants that feed on plants and waste organic matter (detritophages).They are often the cause of disease and happiness in humans and other animals.
While there are about 50,000 species of mites described, it is estimated that there are between 100,000 and 500,000 yet to be discovered.
It can serve you: Examples of Parasitism
Characteristics of mites
Mites are classified within the class of arachnidsTherefore, it shares some morphological characteristics with animals such as the spider and the scorpion: a more or less segmented body covered with a chitin exoskeleton, four pairs of jointed legs and a pair of chelicerae (pincers) that serve to feed. In parasitic variants, these appendages are adapted to gnaw on skin and suck blood or other vital substances.
The habitats of the mites are, as we have said, very varied, being able to find them even at 5000 meters deep in the sea; but nevertheless, It is common to find them in our homes, housed in rugs, stuffed animals, covers and bedding, because they feed on the pieces of dead skin that our bodies leave behind.
They are also common in the fur or plumage of numerous animals and insects. Some variants can become agricultural pests or lead to contact-borne diseases, such as scabies (psoriasis).
Types of mites
According to their diet, we can also distinguish between four forms of mite:
- Parasites. They feed on the skin or blood of animals, including humans, causing damage and skin diseases.
- Predators. They feed on microorganisms, small arthropods or other smaller arachnids.
- Detritophages. They feed on organic waste left behind by plants and other animals, such as scales, pieces of skin, hair, etc.
- Phytophages and mycophagi. They feed on plants, vegetables and fungi.
Mite allergy
Most of the mites are usually harmless. But nevertheless, your stools and the bodies of dead mites are among the main causes of common allergies and asthma in humans. The usual symptoms of such an allergy include sneezing, congestion, runny nose, cough, watery eyes, and / or redness of the skin.
Correct ventilation of the rooms is normally recommended, avoiding the accumulation of humidity, as well as regular cleaning with hot water (over 60 ° C) of carpets, plush toys and bedding, as well as the periodic exposure of mattresses and pillows in the sun.
Examples of mites
- Dust mite. The "common" mite, normally harmless, although it may be linked to respiratory and skin allergies. It is possible to find it anywhere in our homes, on sofas and cushions, on carpets, where they feed on organic waste of any kind. They are part of the domestic ecosystem.
- Scabies mite. The cause of the scabies, a disease that afflicts man and other mammals, causing hives and sores on the skin. This is because these mites dig tunnels within the outer layers of tissue, where they feed and lay their eggs, preventing wounds from healing well. This disease can be transmitted from one living being to another with the simple contact of their skin, but it usually requires poor hygienic conditions to thrive.
- Ticks. The well-known ticks, which parasitize various forms of mammals (cattle, dogs, cats) and can even feed on humans, are actually a form of large parasitic mite. They are not only annoying animals, but also carriers of lethal diseases, such as typhus, Lyme disease or certain forms of nervous paralysis with just their bite.
- Piojillo of the birds. These mites blood sucking (they feed on blood) they parasitize birds, especially poultry, and can sometimes proliferate to the extent of causing anemia in the animals whose blood they feed on. It is common to find them in chickens, turkeys and animals that are raised in large numbers, since in those cases they can pass from one animal to another and keep the infection alive.
- Red mite. Scientific name Panonychus ulmi, this phytophagous mite is typical of fruit trees and is considered a typical summer pest. They usually hibernate in the form of an egg and emerge in spring on the underside of the leaves, which tend to dry out and fall as a result.
- Red spider. Sometimes confused with the red mite, the Tetranychus urticae it is also a common pest of fruit trees, present in more than 150 plant species of agricultural importance. It is usually located on the underside of the leaves, where it weaves a kind of cobweb (hence its name).
- Cheese mite. This mite commonly attacks cheeses that have been stored for a long time: its presence is noted as a grayish and mealy shoreline, where live mites, their eggs and their feces are found. Contact with these mites can produce cases of dermatitis in man.
- Warehouse mite or weevil. Another form of house mite, which usually appears in cupboards, where it feeds on flour, pasta and other vegetable forms for culinary use, or on the forms of fungus that originate in them. Some variants like Glycyphagus domesticus or Suidasia medanensis they are capable of producing allergies in people.
- Scab mite. This mite, which affects the crops of about 30 edible plant species, from the vine to the pistachio, is commonly known as scab in the agricultural regions of Spain. On the leaves, they are recognizable by the black (necrotic) dots that they leave along their veins, but they can infect any green area of the plantation.
- Soil mite. These animals are among the most numerous that exist, scattered on the floors of forests, prairies or any ecosystem that provides them with abundant organic matter to degrade. They are, in this sense, a vital part of the transmission cycle of matter and make up the lowest link in the food chain.
