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Latin Name: Acarus siro
Common Name: Grain Mite
Other Names: Baker’s itch mite
Pest Details
Origin:It is found throughout the world and its origin is uncertain.
Biology:
This species of mite is a common pest in dried food products such as cereals, feed, cheese, flour, and dried fruits, and is found throughout the world. Its presence imparts a sour taste to the food and encourages deterioration of it in storage. High humidity and damp conditions encourage their presence and reproduction, with a relative humidity below 62% causing them to die. Complete development from egg to adult takes less than 3 weeks when conditions are favorable, and under optimal conditions the reproductive rate is staggering, with millions of mites produced within just a few months.
Identification:Adult mites are only one third of a millimeter long and grayish white with pink legs. The body is oval and at the front appears pinched, with the mouthparts
Latin Name: Ornithonyssus sylviarum
Common Name: Northern Fowl Mite
Other Names: Bird mite
Pest Details
Origin:The origin of this mite is likely to be unknown, as it is found throughout the world in temperate regions.
Biology:
This common mite is a parasite on all kinds of domestic poultry as well as pigeons, sparrows, starlings, and many other birds. It is found throughout the world. Particularly in the absence of its preferred bird hosts the mites will move about within a structure where birds have been nesting or roosting and will bite humans. The bites are said to cause a painful skin irritation. Bird mites in general cannot continue to breed and survive without their bird hosts. Eggs will normally be deposited on the host bird with only a few eggs produced by each female. However, development from egg to adult mite completes in a week or less, and populations can build up rapidly because of this. The eggs hatch to
Latin Name: Pyemotes tritici
Common Name: Straw Itch Mite
Other Names: Grain itch mite
Pest Details
Origin:Unknown, as the mites are found throughout the world, transported in infested materials with trade and commerce for many centuries.
Biology:
This mite is a paradox. For much of its life it feeds on the larvae of other insects, but when humans come into contact with the medium of the mites and their normal host insects they will be bitten as well. Since the normal hosts of the mites may be moth or beetle larvae associated with grains or straw used for bedding, when humans are attacked it is referred to as “straw itch”, or also barley, grain, mattress, or hay itch. The effect on bitten humans can be a severe rash and pustules, extreme itching, and fever, all of which may require a month to dissipate. The life cycle is peculiar, with the male often spending its entire life on the distended abdomen of the female as a parasite on
Latin Name: Ornithonyssus bacoti
Common Name: Tropical Rat Mite
Other Names: N/A
Pest Details
Origin:The origin of this mite is likely to be unknown, as it is found throughout the world in temperate regions.
Biology:
This common mite is a parasite on all kinds of mammals, including rodents such as rats and mice, squirrels, and others, as well as opossum, raccoons, cats, and even on birds. It is found throughout the world where peridomestic rats occur. Particularly in the absence of its preferred hosts the mites will move about within a structure where rodents have been nesting and will bite humans. The bites are said to cause a painful skin irritation. Rat mites in general cannot continue to breed and survive without their mammal hosts. Eggs will normally be deposited on the animal with only a few eggs produced by each female. However, development from egg to adult mite completes in a week or less, and populations
Latin Name: Tetranychus urticae
Common Name: Twospotted Spider Mite
Other Names: Plant mite
Pest Details
Origin:While this mite was first described in Europe it is considered to be native to the temperate zones of the world, and now can be found in sub-tropical areas as well. It survives cold winters in northern climates by living in greenhouses.
Biology:
Eggs are deposited within a layer of silk webbing produced by the mites and they hatch in just 3 days. Development from egg to adult mite, under ideal conditions, may be completed in 1 week. The stages of development are egg, larva, two nymph stages, and adult, and adult mites may live for several weeks. Females are capable of producing several hundred eggs and multiple generations will occur in each year. The mites feed with a needle-like piercing mouth that enables them to remove plant fluids, and damage shows as small, discolored spots at the point of feeding.
Latin Name: Penthaleus major
Common Name: Winter Grain Mite
Other Names: N/A
Pest Details
Origin:Possibly native to North America.
Biology:
This mite can be a serious pest in lawns, pastures and other areas where grasses are grown throughout the cool season. There usually will be two generations each year, beginning with mites emerging from eggs laid in the soil that have passed the summer months in the soil. These first mites emerge in the fall and populations peak in mid-winter, with new eggs deposited. The second generation emerges from these eggs and these populations peak in late spring, gradually disappearing as the weather gets warmer. The mites are active at night and on cloudy days, moving under plant materials or into the soil on sunny days. The visible damage is to the foliage, but the mites may also move down to feed on the crowns, and at this point are more likely to kill the grass plants.
Identification:This
Latin Name: Spirostreptidae
Common Name: Desert Millipede
Other Names: Orthoporus ornatus
Pest Details
Origin:These are native species in the southwest U.S.
Biology:
These large millipedes occur primarily in the hotter, drier regions of the south and southwest U.S. They differ from typical millipedes in that they have only a single pair of legs on each of the first five body segments, whereas typical millipedes have 2 pairs of legs on each body segment. They typically are large species that may grow to more than 6 inches in length. They are scavengers that feed on dead plant and animal materials and thus are important in recycling these materials. When disturbed they coil into a tight spiral and may ooze out an oily fluid from glands near where the legs attach. This fluid is foul tasting but also toxic to any animal that attempts to eat the millipede.
Identification:The mature adults may grow to over 6 inches in length
Latin Name: Oxidus garcilis
Common Name: Greenhouse Millipede
Other Names: Garden millipede
Pest Details
Origin:These are native species in North America.
Biology:
These small millipedes can be extremely common in landscape and greenhouses, occasionally feeding on live plant materials as well as the normal decaying plant matter. In summer months their populations may swell and thousands may be driven into landscaped areas when their normal habitats dry out, or be flushed out of landscape or turf by excessive watering. They are small enough to easily enter structures but cannot survive inside the structure with its dry conditions. These millipedes are harmless and even unlikely to exude the foul oils of the larger species.
Identification:The Garden millipedes will normally be no longer than 1 inch. They have a more flattened appearance and the body segments have a rougher appearance. The legs are longer in proportion
Latin Name: Scutigera coleoptrata
Common Name: House Centipede
Latin Family Name: Chilopoda
Other Names: N/A
Pest Details
Origin:This species is native to Mexico, and is now found in the United States from coast to coast.
Biology:
The house centipede is an eerie-looking animal, with 15 pairs of extremely long legs that give the impression of a feather moving across the floor or wall. It normally occurs outdoors, hiding under materials on the soil in the daytime, but commonly will enter structures, spending most of its time in damp areas around sinks, basements, crawl spaces, or other areas of higher moisture. Like other centipedes it is a predator on insects such as flies, roaches, and spiders, and may even be found around lights, capturing the insects that are attracted to them. The house centipede does have venom, but its stinging apparatus behind the jaws is too weak to be able to penetrate most human skin,
Latin Name: Parajulus sp.
Common Name: Millipedes
Other Names: Thousand leggers
Pest Details
Origin:Most are native species in North America with at least one introduced species in the Southeast.
Biology:
These large millipedes occur throughout North America in wet to damp habitats. They differ from desert millipedes in that they have 2 pairs of legs on each body segment, whereas desert millipedes have only a single pair of legs on each of the first five body segments,. They are small to large species with some very common kinds maturing at just over 1 inch long. They are scavengers that feed on dead plant materials and thus are important in recycling these materials, but also may feed on some green vegetation. When disturbed they coil into a tight spiral and may ooze out an oily fluid from glands near where the legs attach. This fluid is foul tasting but also toxic to any animal that attempts to eat the millipede.