Trombicula alfreddugesi

Trombicula alfreddugesi
Larval harvest mite from North America
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Subclass: Acari
Order: Trombidiformes
Family: Trombiculidae
Genus: Trombicula
Species: T. alfreddugesi
Binomial name
Trombicula alfreddugesi
(Oudemans)

Trombicula alfreddugesi, also called Eutrombicula alfreddugesi, is a species in the genus Trombicula. (Eutrombicula is a subgenus of mites in Trombicula of the family Trombiculidae.[1])

It is the common chigger species of the United States, also sometimes called the harvest mite. Chiggers are the parasitic larval stages of these free-living mites.[2] People in the dry Western states rarely if ever see them because the species prefers humid climates.[3] They are commonly found in undergrowth and grassy brush areas; the larvae host on animals (e.g. reptiles, birds, and wild and domestic mammals), causing welts that can turn into dermatitis.

References

  1. "Eutrombicula", Medical Dictionary, Free Dictionary.com.
  2. "The chigger Eutrombicula (Trombicula) alfreddugesi isn't picky", Daily Parasite blog, 28 May 2010.
  3. "Eutrombicula alfreddugesi", Encyclopædia Britannica online, retrieved 10 August 2011: "occurs from the Atlantic coast to the Midwest and southward to Mexico".
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