Question
QUESTION: Hi. I live in vancouver bc and we have some type of mite problem in our apartment. They are not bed bugs as they are extremely small and likely started on a plant where we first noticed them. We removed all the plants and are diligent about maintaining a clean home but we continue to get bites. The bites are often in the crotch or under a bra, sock etc. We are curious if these are chiggers and if they will go away? We had a visual and a canine inspection done for bed bugs which was negative. Furthermore, the bites do not follow the bed bug pattern. Any help would be appreciated to identify this mite, insect etc.

Cheers

ANSWER: Alan,

Chigger mites don't infest homes and are not found indoors (see http://www.livingwithbugs.com/chigger.html for more about these mites as well as pictures of bites). I'm guessing this is something else. Bed bugs are relative large and easy to diagnosis (see http://www.livingwithbugs.com/bed_bug.html) so without strong evidence of bed bugs I think you can rule them out. In my experience if you are unable to catch something the likely cause is not insects or mites. There are many things that mimic bug bites but environmental irritants and allergies are the most likely. The symptoms seem to occur in sensitive areas covered by clothing. Given this I'd suspect laundry soap or something similar related to the laundry. Sorry I can't be more specific but post a follow up if you have questions.

Jack DeAngelis


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QUESTION: Thanks for the reply Jack. We have actually seen them and they are very very small. We first saw them on our ficas plant which we threw out along with all of our plants subsequently when we discoverd the problem persisting. They are very small like specks of dust that move. Light brown or almost orange. lDefinitely not an environmental allergen or a result of soaps as we have been using the same products for years which are all sodium laureth sulfate, dye and fragrance free.  If not chiggers what are the other possible options?  Thanks again Jack I appreciate the response.

ANSWER: The other possibility would be mold mites (see http://www.livingwithbugs.com/mold_mites.html for a drawing). Mold mites don't bite either but they do indicate the presence of mold, on which they feed. Mold can be a strong allergen so we a back to the possibility of an environmental/allergic type cause. Are there areas of dampness/moisture where you are seeing the mites?

Jack DeAngelis


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Bug bite   QUESTION: Hi Jack.  Thanks again for the response.  Our apartment is quite dry however the Ficus plant we removed had the top of the planter covered which might have led to mould growth.  After having seen the bugs however they did not appear white but reddish/brown and very very tiny.  I took a picture of a bite on my sons back and it appears to be similar to what others are reporting. Perhaps we are getting the bites somewhere else and not in the house and the bugs we saw on the plants were some other type of bug?  Thank you in advance....

Answer
Unfortunately bites are not very diagnostic, lots of different things can cause similar lesions. You could take a sample of the mites to your county Extension office (www.extension.org) and at least then we'd have an id. I doubt that the mites are causing the bites but an id would settle the question.

Jack DeAngelis