Years ago, with my then-host in the USA, John C. Moser, I described the #myrmecophilous #phoretic #mite #Histiostoma #blomquisti as a new #species (S.F.Wirth & J.C.Moser, 2010).
In a recent #sciencecomm. #article, I reconstructed its #biology, being found on active #queens of ant #Solenopsis #invicta, from my current perspective (S.F.Wirth,2026).
©#StefanFWirth 2026
Please support me with a coffee https://ko-fi.com/sfwirth
Ref
https://doi.org/10.1051/acarologia/20101979
#Photos
©S F.Wirth
Very small #mites are subject of my research as they are associated with other arthropods (#phoretic#dispersal), and even #influence the #microclimate in their #habitats in complex ways, by fungal #spore transport+chemical fungal growth regulation via own #fungicides. #Histiostoma #sapromyzarum is subject of my current#Behance project exploring it also #aestheticslly.
I depend on support, please buy me a coffee
https://ko-fi.com/sfwirth
Behance S F.Wirth
https://www.behance.net/gallery/244398767/Fragile-Transparency
Why a #mite of the #Parasitidae (#Mesostigmata), apparently genus #Parasitellus, seemingly attacks moth #Pyrausta #despicata (Crambidae). Parasitellus develops in #bumblebee #nests and uses them for dispersal (#phoresy) to other nests, thus they leave their hosts on blossoms and wait for new hosts to be carried to new nests. The moth was detected by the mite as a #nonsuitable #phoretic #host.
© #StefanFWirth #Berlin 2025
Visit my new YouTube Video:
https://youtu.be/gRAT7CIKWTk?si=hb2LC19Fmf1URVl6
Photos
©S.F. Wirth
My #YouTube #article points to my upcoming nature #video, showing interesting #biological #interactions on a common #dandelion inflorescence. A #mite (#Parasitellus sp.) appears to be attacking a #moth (#Pyrausta #despicata), but in reality, this is merely a #mistake by the mite, which is actually looking for a bee, presumably bumblebee, as a #phoretic #host for #dispersal.
©#StefanFWirth Berlin 2025
Reference
YouTube article S. F. Wirth (2025):
http://youtube.com/post/UgkxP4oYFemnF7k6y-nbS89fXNeVq1h3xKh9?si=aJ8MiJJvpfPaYabn
#Photos
©S.F. Wirth
The #duskyant, #Formica #fusca (#Myrmicinae), is a ground-dwelling #ant with #earthnests in warmer habitats, widespread in #CentralEurope and extending across the western #Palearctic. The nests are #polygynous (severely active #queens). Like many ant species, this one also carries #phoretic organisms on its body, e.g., #mites of the #Histiostomatidae. #biodiversity #insects #Hymenoptera
© #StefanFWirth, #Berlin May 2025
Artistic Photo:
#Worker of F. fusca Berlin, May 2025, © S.F. Wirth
#Lemon #tree #Citrus × #limon, its fruits, their insecticidal effect, about tree-#endophytic #organisms (#microbiota) and the rotting #fruits as #habitats for #phoretic #mites (#Histiostomatidae). #Ecology, #phoresy, #phoresis, #soil, #decomposition
© #StefanFWirth Berlin2024
My #blog on #biologe + #literature:
wp.me/p2l6XU-1TF
Photos 2+3: details of small #lemontree from plant trade Berlin, 1: #Histiostoma sp. (H. #feroniarum-complex) from lemons in #Sorrento (#Italy,2006) © S. F. Wirth 2024
Link to my complete #blogarticle about #Opuntioideae, aspects of its phylogeny with focus on #Maihueniopsis-like species, which branch off more basically in the tree of Opuntioideae. It's also about the #phoretic decomposer mites #Bonomoia #opuntiae and B. sp. on two Opuntia species and the parasite #Dactylopius Zimmermannii (#Coccoidea) on Maihueniopsis.
©#StefanFWirth Berlin 2024
Full blog article:
https://twitter.com/wirthstef/status/1751020140898971776?t=g1V3iHe4mW_ahQLWzdPr4g&s=19
Photo: B. opuntiae feeding, #SEM © StefanFWirth
Arthropods associated with #cacti of #Opuntioideae with focus on a #parasite (#insect) and a #decomposer (#mite) with information about the phylogeny of this cactus taxon. The Opuntioideae are a monophyletic subgroup of the cacti (#Cactaceae, #Caryophyllales). The best-known…
My contribution about phoretic mites: #GlobalSymposium on #soils for nutrition, 2022 by FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. #Proceedings volume now published.
citation of Proceedings volume:
#FAO. 2023. Soils, where food begins – Proceedings of the Global Symposium on Soils for Nutrition, 26-29 July 2022. Rome. https://doi.org/10.4060/cc6728en
My #paper: #Phoretic #mites as #microclimate originators in special #ephemeral #soil #habitats ....., page 112
Stefan F. Wirth