A Spider with Mites

[c'est ma]

Beautiful mites! Wonderful pics of wonderful picture subjects. Mites do fascinate me--I even get aquatic ones in my water gardens. Does anyone know why so many of them are aposematic?

Bill, I think having a cave named after you is about as cool as it gets! But you'd better put up a plaque--lots of other Bills could take credit for it.

I am very envious of your family background and extended family's varied natural history interests. I had to get where I am after starting out with an "eek-a-bug" Mom...my kids, on the other hand, have grown up with a little bit of everything that could be captured and studied for a while. (So one now wants to create video games and the other wants to be a nurse. Sigh.)

Cheers!

 

[wedge07]

Thank you Bill and...

You'd be surprised what's living in your eye lashes.

Bird man you have officially creeped me out, I am going to find a way to clean my eyelashes now...

 

[Bill S]

Bill, I think having a cave named after you is about as cool as it gets! But you'd better put up a plaque--lots of other Bills could take credit for it.

Actually, we've negotiated access rights to the cave and have it gated now. And we've discussed buying the land that it's on so that we can protect it.

I am very envious of your family background and extended family's varied natural history interests. I had to get where I am after starting out with an "eek-a-bug" Mom...my kids, on the other hand, have grown up with a little bit of everything that could be captured and studied for a while. (So one now wants to create video games and the other wants to be a nurse. Sigh.)

While my wife and I both had a lot of biologists of various sorts in our families, my parents were not among them. My father, in particular, never adjusted well to being surrounded by animals that either creeped him out or outright frightened him. He still mutters about having produced a bunch of biologists.

 

[Sky`Scorcher]

Those mites sure are fluffy

They're like walking fuzzy pin cushions

 

[c'est ma]

Actually, we've negotiated access rights to the cave and have it gated now. And we've discussed buying the land that it's on so that we can protect it.

Wow, how cool would that be?! (Sorry, enthusiasm overtakes grown-up language...)

While my wife and I both had a lot of biologists of various sorts in our families, my parents were not among them. My father, in particular, never adjusted well to being surrounded by animals that either creeped him out or outright frightened him. He still mutters about having produced a bunch of biologists.

Funny how things go. At least you & your wife found each other. My husband's a scientist--a biochemist with "big Pharma." And his hobby's golf.

--Diane

 

[ReMoVeR]

ohhh those are mites??!!! damn!! didn't know all those red "spiders" i used to see around the summer since i was a lil kid were mites hihihi xDD nice. and they look AWESOME!!! x))

//Tiago

 

[dfourer]

I call these velvet mites. I see them out in the open, aparently scavanging or hunting in plain sight. Nice photos. I never really looked into their biology.

 

[Mack&Cass]

That's very interesting. We actually had an H. lightfooti come in with some mites a little while back. They're pretty small and white. There's usually about 6 of them in the area between the prosoma and opisthosoma (I can't remember the term offhand). We've tried to get them off with a paintbrush but that T is so freakin' fast. I'd post a picture to see what you think, but the T is only about 1", which makes photographing the mites difficult. They don't seem to be affecting him at all though, he's still fast as lightning, eats like a horse and he's molted already no problem. I believe they're just hitchhiking, but any advice from you would be fantastic.

 

[cacoseraph]

i thought i had read that (some/all?) of velvet mites *are* parasitic in their young phase and then turn to straight predation when they mature?

 

[jcornish86]

You'd be surprised what's living in your eye lashes.

thanks as soon as i saw this i started rubbing my eyes hahaha

 

[Bill S]

i thought i had read that (some/all?) of velvet mites *are* parasitic in their young phase and then turn to straight predation when they mature?

Yes. In their early stage they are parasitic - but not in the adult form shown here. Most parasitic forms are pretty limited as to what they can parasitize. Not sure about what these guys go after as youngsters.

 

[cacoseraph]

i tried to culture these... then got paranoids and wiped the culture

i had adults going strong for 3-4 months (er, at least they didn't die in that time heh)... i put mangled roaches in from time to time and had sub from cages that had grain mites in it.

don't know if any of it was working or not, cuz some bugs er... just take a really long time to die and it can be mistaken for doing "ok" with them


my psuedoscorp forays taught me that :/








the velvet mites are interesting because there are periods where they are very common in some areas i frequent. there are days i can find 5-10 under almost every rock i flip... then later i the week, in the same area you can't find ANY... but go back two days later and the joint is crawling with little neon red dots

 

[Bill S]

my psuedoscorp forays taught me that :/

My wife has been dabbling with pseudoscorps. She's got one female that is currently on at least its fourth litter of babies, and it hasn't been with a male the whole time my wife has had it.

For those not familiar with pseudoscorps, they are bizarre. They produce venom in their claws, and "nurse" their young. (Not quite "nurse" in the sense that mammals do, but something similar. The ovaries produce a "milk", and the growing embryos hang on the underside of the female and live off that milk.)