''Neotrombicula autumnalis'', known as the harvest mite or autumn chigger, is a species of

mite Mites are small arachnids (eight-legged arthropods). Mites span two large orders of arachnids, the Acariformes and the Parasitiformes, which were historically grouped together in the subclass Acari, but genetic analysis does not show clear evid ...

of the family

Trombiculidae Trombiculidae (); commonly referred to in North America as chiggers and in Britain as harvest mites, but also known as berry bugs, bush-mites, red bugs or scrub-itch mites, are a family of mites. Chiggers are often confused with jiggers – a t ...

. Their larvae live parasitically; they infect all domestic mammals, humans, and some ground-nesting

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

Description

The larvae are normally orange or red with six legs, but develop eight legs by nymph stage. The larvae are up to in size, with adult mites about long.

Lifecycle

The eggs are laid in damp soil. After hatching, the larvae climb blades of grass and wait for a potential host. With their "blade-like

chelicerae The chelicerae () are the mouthparts of the subphylum Chelicerata, an arthropod group that includes arachnids, horseshoe crabs, and sea spiders. Commonly referred to as " jaws", chelicerae may be shaped as either articulated fangs, or simila ...

", they attach themselves to the hosts and feed on their tissues. After sucking, which lasts several days, they fall off and develop over three stages of nymph to adult mites.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1300469, from2=Q46836504 Trombiculidae Animals described in 1790 Parasitic arthropods of humans