identifying #mites on #iNaturalist is like…
what do you expect me to do with this
if I'm feeling generous I knock it back to "Life". if not I put a thumbs down next to "Data quality: evidence of organism"
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#mites
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Is there an entomologist on the line? I have noticed at least 3 different bumble bees with this strange pale mark on the back (it's difficult to see clearly because they're never still).
I *think* it might be a kind of mite (varroa?) , they clearly feel it because I could see all the bees were stroking it occasionally with a leg, but they still continued flying and feeding. This was the best of about a hundred photos I tried to take with my phone!
Any clues what it is? @thebeeguy #bumblebee #bees #mites #Mitestodon
Edit: new photo crop might be clearer
For #MiteMonday: mites eating things.
1. Long-legged velvet mites (family Erythraeidae, probably _Balaustium_) eating a midge
2. A whirligig mite (family Anystidae) eating a globular springtail
3. A snout mite (family Bdellidae) eating a barklouse
A nice, cool morning for a walk. Spotted a Sumo Mite and some Wolf’s Milk along the way.
#bloomscrolling #slimemold #mites
Bonus #MiteMonday: a _Balaustium_ sidewalk mite feeding on pollen from a horse-chestnut flower (which I put down to attract them and get photos).
These mites can be found in great numbers this time of year, very visible on surfaces like concrete and bricks, hence the name. As well as pollen and sap I've seen them feeding on dead bugs. Some are purely raspberry-red, others have this longer white coat or just white patches, others have a gorgeous blue-green iridescent sheen.
The pair of red protuberances are not eyes but special structures called urnulae, which secrete various useful substances like a defensive chemical/alarm pheromone, and a "waterproofing" compound that prevents their cuticle from drying out (useful as they spend a lot of time running around in the sun).
It's still #MiteMonday somewhere…
Vignette from under a log. A snout mite (family Bdellidae) feeds on the remains of a springtail, with a guest appearance from a beetle mite (order? suborder? Oribatida)*.
* Above superfamily or so, mite taxonomic ranks start getting contentious.
GIF
Belated #MiteMonday: it's the time of year I start carrying a little water dropper bottle for the whirligig mites. I've found it's a reliable way to get them to stay still for photos. 
Little red mites of spring!
- A larval sidewalk mite (_Balaustium_) eating pollen
- A young whirligig mite (family Anystidae) eating clover mite eggs (the little reddish balls)
- Sumo mites (_Allothrombium_) wrestling
- and lastly, a clover mite (_Bryobia_), which isn't really that red when full grown but which all of the other mites are frequently misidentified as. They won't be out much longer, they go dormant in the hot months.
#MiteMonday: this weekend I got out to my sumo mite (_Allothrombium_) tree to catch some wrestling bouts!
It is some kind of sexual competition thing: certain males seem to stake out a little patch and aggressively defend it against all comers. The females, I think, are the larger ones who take little notice of the fights and mostly wedge themselves into crevices in bark? Courtship rituals seem to involve leg-tapping and walking around each other in circles. I am wildly curious about what's actually going on.
New on Entomology Today: What scientists know as "mites" is almost certainly an artificial taxonomic group, according to recent phylogenetic analyses. For more than a century, the view of mites as a single lineage centered on them having a highly modified mouthpart region, but advanced microscopic techniques now reveal that many species of mites lack a key fusion of mouthparts that was the foundation for their classification. #entomology #mites https://entomologytoday.org/2025/05/07/mites-made-up-taxon-analysis-debunks-classification-acari/
Entomology Today · Mites Are a Made-Up Taxon: New Analysis Further Debunks Long-Held ClassificationWhat scientists know as "mites" is almost certainly an artificial taxonomic group, according to recent phylogenetic analyses and studies using advanced microscopic techniques.
#MiteMonday: a red velvet mite (_Allothrombium_) sneakily snacks on midges from a spider's web. I also saw a red-winged blackbird eating a midge-filled spiderweb, too. At this time of year, the few spiders that overwintered catch so many midges that their webs almost collapse under the weight—more than they could possibly eat. I wonder how much midge biomass these spiders inadvertently make available to other animals!
Did you know? Tiny penthaleid mites will sometimes wear water drops as hats. 
(That's a total fuckin' lie, it's their excrement. Their anuses are located on their backs.)
#MiteMonday: it's that time of year again! A sheet-web weaver's web in a willow tree crevice is carpeted with tiny _Bryobia_ clover mites.
I almost forgot it was #MiteMonday! Inspired by @zorbama's shot of a running crab spider, clover mite, and midge all together (https://veganism.social/@zorbama/114373000260983349), here's a running crab spider (_Philodromus_) I found feeding on a clover mite (_Bryobia_). I don't actually often find many arthropods feeding on the adults, though I've seen predatory _Anystis_ mites eating the eggs.
#Histiostomatidae #mites phoretically attach arthropods, having e.g. these #apomorphies (newly evolved features): #filtermouth in free stages and forward-facing #legs 3,4 of #deutonymphs, supporting #attaching/#detaching #host. #Images = my current #research
© #StefanFWirth 2025
Related papers
S. F. Wirth 2016
https://doi.org/10.21684/0132-8077-2016-24-2-97-111
S. F. Wirth 2023, pp 102-103
https://doi.org/10.4060/cc6728en
#Photos
1) sideview mouth adult H. sp ex tree stump (2022) 2) deutonymph B. #sibirica (2016) © S. F. W.
I almost forgot it was #MiteMonday! From under one of my reliable dead logs just a few days ago, a mesostig with its prey, a tiny white springtail; a slug for scale; and a smaller, paler mesostig crossing paths with another springtail (which it did not try to eat).
Replied to Entomological Soc. of America
Interesting:
"Varroa mites originally evolved to parasitize Apis cerana, the honey bee species native to Asia, and only affected drones of that species. When Varroa mites infect worker brood in Asian bees, the larva dies and the Varroa mite can’t reproduce."
"As they adapted to the honey bees (Apis mellifera) common in Europe and North America, however, Varroa mites became able to parasitize drone, queen, or worker bees. However, there is a still a large preference for drone brood. Varroa mites are often 5–10 times more abundant in drone brood cells than worker or queen cells. Since drones take longer to mature into adults and the drone brood are bigger, the Varroa mites can produce more offspring in these cells. By removing excess drone brood, a beekeeper can eliminate a large portion of their Varroa mite population."
During this recent spate of warmish weather I've been checking my go-to sumo mite (_Allothrombium_) trees. It's still too early for a dense population, but there are definitely a few out and about!
Here's an earlier video I took of sumo mites wrestling: https://youtu.be/qZ0Ml6VXujg
Flipped over a piece of log on a big dead stump and there were tons of those little iridescent blue-purple springtails, but also several mesostigs. I was watching them hoping one would catch a springtail, and one seemed to be questing about for something. Then it chased after one of the other mites, flung itself on its back, and after some tumbling around ended up clinging to its underside. Then, this. I'm not even sure what's happening, I don't even know what appendages these mites use for sperm transfer.
edit: oh yeah I forgot to add they're totally having sex