#Arachtober 23: witnessed some interesting behaviour between two long-legged velvet mites (family Erythraeidae, likely genus _Balaustium_) on a tree trunk. They were circling each other and drumming their legs, similar to what I've seen courting _Allothrombium_ red velvet mites doing. I am going to email a mite expert and see what they think!
Unfortunately somewhat shaky video here: https://youtu.be/eGYU6fMfm_Q
#ArthroBeauty #DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #Acari #Acariformes #Prostigmata #Parasitengona #Erythraeidae
#Arachtober #MiteMonday: just a good old red velvet mite (_Allothrombium_).
Just imagine having a guinea pig-sized one, as a pet. It would be soft and squishy. It would enjoy squeezing into little crevices to nap. You could brush it, very gently. It wouldn't see very well. It could climb up things with little retractable claws. You could probably feed it mealworms.
#ArthroBeauty #arachnids #mites #Acari #Acariformes #Prostigmata #Parasitengona #Trombidiidae
The sidewalk mites (_Balaustium_) that swarm over the ground this time of year primarily eat pollen, but they will also scavenge dead bugs (I do not think they are actually predatory). This horde has found an ant pupa, I think?
I am fascinated by this behaviour and try to catch it at least once every summer.
#DailyMiteVid #Mitestodon #MiteBehaviour #arachnids #mites #Acari #Acariformes #Parasitengona #Erythraeidae
#MiteMonday: ever look down and see a bunch of little red guys on the pavement or whatever? Chances are they're long-legged velvet mites (family Erythraeidae) in the genus _Balaustium_. Practically all of their relatives are parasitic on other arthropods as larvae and predatory as adults, but some common _Balaustium_ species are lifelong pollen-eaters. Here's one eating peony pollen I put down.
#DailyMiteVid #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #Acari #Acariformes #Parasitengona #Erythraeidae
#MiteMonday: Did you know? Legally, you can take as many photos of ants farming ridiculously mite-infested aphids as you want. No one can stop you.
#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #ants #aphids #Acari #parasitism #Parasitengona #Hemiptera #Aphididae #Hymenoptera #Formicidae
They're not the only mites that subsist on aphids—many populations were also parasitized by larval Parasitengona, a large group that includes red velvet mites, long-legged velvet mites, water mites, etc. (They can't really be ID'd at this stage, and there are many possibilities.) Level of parasitism ranged from a single aphid with one tiny mite on it to populations that were more mite than aphid!
(The mite in this photo is a bit on the larger side? They get much, much smaller and only a little bit bigger.)
#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #Acari #Parasitengona #parasitism
A _Uroleucon_ aphid is born! It's a girl…and it's a girl!
Aphids can reproduce asexually, and they give live birth, AND their clone babies are born already pregnant with their own clones. This helps them multiply so fast. (They can also switch to sexual reproduction and laying eggs.)
Note the cluster of orange-red parasitic mites on the mother aphid! They're something from the large group Parasitengona (which includes red velvet mites, sidewalk mites, etc.), but I need to do more research to narrow it down.
#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #parasitism #bugstodon #insects #aphids #Acari #Parasitengona #Hemiptera #Aphididae
Update: went back to the trail between Fort York and the tracks; saw a lot of cool stuff but the highlight was discovering that the aphids on the plants there—mostly tansy and goldenrod—are covered with parasitic larval Parasitengona mites!!!
The mites eventually drop off and develop into free-living predators and scavengers. This is how most long-legged velvet mites (family Erythraeidae) and red velvet mites (family Trombidiidae) start life.
The best way to ID them is to rear them to adulthood (and then send them to an expert). With so many at my disposal I might actually be able to do this successfully.
#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #bugstodon #arachnids #mites #Acari #Parasitengona #parasitism
#MiteMonday: look at that little FACE. WHO is THIS
(Seriously, who is this? Suggest IDs on #iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.ca/observations/208153071 
)
#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #arachnids #mites #Acari #Parasitengona
The only good thing about Monday: #MiteMonday. Here's a old pic from the summer: a cobweb spider feeds on a small parasitengone mite (I can't decide whether it's Trombidiidae or Erythraeidae), with another nearby in its web.
#DailyMitePic #Mitestodon #mites #DailySpiderPic #spiders #Theridiidae #Acari #Parasitengona #macro #ArthroBeauty
neville park