Demodecidae is a family of parasitic and commensal

mite Mites are small arachnids (eight-legged arthropods) of two large orders, the Acariformes and the Parasitiformes, which were historically grouped together in the subclass Acari. However, most recent genetic analyses do not recover the two as eac ...

s, living on various species of

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

s. Each species of mite is usually only found on a single mammal species, whereas a mammal species can have several different species of demodecid mites living on it. Many species of mites are restricted to very limited areas of their body, e.g. the

Meibomian glands Meibomian glands (also called tarsal glands, palpebral glands, and tarsoconjunctival glands) are sebaceous glands along the rims of the eyelid inside the tarsal plate. They produce meibum, an oily substance that prevents evaporation of the ey ...

, the ear canal, the tongue etc. The family was formerly named ''Demodicidae''.

References

Trombidiformes Acari families {{Acari-stub