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This little feller is slightly over 1/8 inch long, lives in the coastal range of central California, and I have no idea what it is! Anyone out there have a clue?
Category Photography / Miscellaneous
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 750 x 720px
File Size 535.2 kB
No problem. They live everywhere. Literally. If you have a big, dark colored rock next to your house, go out on a hot day and watch the surface. They'll be crawling all around. They bite and inject a poison that makes sort of a pimple mark. Their young use that wound to feed, it takes days to heal. Not really much that can be done about them, but then again they don't seem to bite often.
Yeah, I think that little bastard is a chigger, just like your first commenter said. My advice? Kill the little fuckers with fire. They're nasty little parasites and at at least one stage in their life cycle they delight in burrowing into your skin. They're kin to ticks, I believe, and they used to be pretty bad here when I was a kid.
If Wikipedia is to be believed they're everywhere in the world except the coldest regions like the Arctic and, it looks like, part of Africa. But for some reason I thought they were only out east, too. I guess maybe I don't know as much about the western United States as I thought.
I apologize for the foul language, by the way. But those things are nasty.
I apologize for the foul language, by the way. But those things are nasty.
I saw a map on the google page that showed them only east of the Rockies, which is what I've always believed too. There are a couple of mites that live here that look like that but they are significantly smaller. So either this was a mutant mite or a displaced chigger....take your pick.
And LOL....I actually did do a little double-take on that. I'm like...VeloxFox cussing???? Oh my...what next?
And LOL....I actually did do a little double-take on that. I'm like...VeloxFox cussing???? Oh my...what next?
If they're rare where you live, count yourself lucky. I haven't seen any in some years, mostly because I never go walking in tall grass the way I did when I was a kid. But they've always been a fact of life around here.
*Grins* I do use foul language on occasion but I tend to mind my manners out in public, which does include on-line forums like this. My parents were actually pretty lenient about language when I was a kid, as long as I was at home, but I knew my grandmother would not stand for any sort of bad language. I probably spent almost as much time at her place as I did at home and it kind of left an impression.
*Grins* I do use foul language on occasion but I tend to mind my manners out in public, which does include on-line forums like this. My parents were actually pretty lenient about language when I was a kid, as long as I was at home, but I knew my grandmother would not stand for any sort of bad language. I probably spent almost as much time at her place as I did at home and it kind of left an impression.
I spend a LOT of time hiking all over here, and it's mostly your typical California chaparral and oak forest. This is my first one, so I'm guessing it could be my last too. Anyway I don't seem to be attractive to biting bugs for some reason. I've had ticks all over me and only had maybe 3 or 4 bites total over the years. And yes...I do count myself lucky on this!!
I try to control my language in public also, and do a fair job for the most part except....if something hurts me suddenly I F-bomb instantly and uncontrollably. Like a knee jerk reaction. Ah well, nobody's perfect!
I try to control my language in public also, and do a fair job for the most part except....if something hurts me suddenly I F-bomb instantly and uncontrollably. Like a knee jerk reaction. Ah well, nobody's perfect!
I see :D
They are somewhat related to the chiggers, but it seems that they are larger than the normal mites called chiggers.
I was looking at possibly using these as part of an integrated pest management plan, but I think they would be worse than the critters they'd be eating.
They are somewhat related to the chiggers, but it seems that they are larger than the normal mites called chiggers.
I was looking at possibly using these as part of an integrated pest management plan, but I think they would be worse than the critters they'd be eating.
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