So, You Think You've Got Paper Mites?
It is an altogether too common experience. Someone in your office spent some time working around the filing cabinets and walked away complaining that something had "bitten" him while he was over in that area. Pretty soon someone else feels the biting and crawling sensations on their skin, and another, and another. Someone mentions "paper mites", and the word is out that the office needs some pest control to get rid of the darned mites.
The receptionist went home that night, told her husband about the hordes of mites attacking them at the office, and the next thing you know HE is infested too, a victim of the mites jumping off his wife and onto him as they talked. So, now he's scratching, and maybe the kids even get infested.
Sound outlandish? Perhaps, but it is a scenario played out every day in this country, and one that professional pest control companies are called to resolve on a regular basis.
Are there really mites that could attack people in their office or their home? Well, certainly, and they may be very common. However, around one half of the time that pest control professionals are consulted to control mites in a structure - - there are no mites there. The cause of the person's discomfort may be due to some other bug pest, or quite often it is generated by their own imagination, a condition clinically called "Delusions of Parasitosis".
Paper Mites!
Let's remove one urban legend right up front - Paper Mites! There simply is no living organism that is called a "paper mite", and yet these critters are consistently blamed for causing bites or allergies on people.
Where "paper mites" began has been attributed several times to the tiny flecks of paper that would sift off of packaging as workers moved things around. These flecks would land on the hands or arms, perhaps cause itching or irritation, and began to be called "paper mites" as a joke. Unfortunately, the joke took on a life of its own.
What kinds of mites could be in buildings?
There are a number of kinds of mites that routinely do occur in homes or workplaces. There are many mites that could well be living with you, and they can cause effects ranging from annoying to severe. In general, perhaps, we could place these mites into one of two groups:
• mites that cause irritation and allergic responses
• mites that feed on us
What kinds of mites actually BITE people?
Probably the most common mites that will occur in structures, that actually do bite humans, are the mites associated with birds and rodents. These are, appropriately, called "bird mites" or "rat mites", and if you have birds nesting or roosting on the structure, or rodents populating the building, you can assume they have brought some of their nasty mites with them. This becomes a particular problem when the birds finally leave or the rodents are removed in a rodent pest control program.
One common cause of bird mites coincides with the annual building of huge numbers of mud nests, by swallows, under the eaves or other overhangs of buildings. These birds and their babies are protected by law, and you may just have to wait them out. Large gatherings of pigeons on building ledges or rooftops also may seed the structure with their mites, that methodically crawl down into the living areas or work areas, seeking other warm bodies to attack.
Rat mites, the Tropical Rat Mite in particular, is a common associate of our three domestic rodents - the House Mouse, Roof Rat, and Norway Rat. Keeping these pests out of our buildings is a vital step in keeping their mites out too, and the removal of a large population of rodents should take into consideration the possible need for pest control as well.
Another kinds of mites that very definitely bite humans is called the Scabies Mite, or mange mite. This microscopic parasite burrows into the skin or feeds on top of it, causing skin rashes and intense itching. However, there currently is no evidence that these mites can be transmitted by any means other than close personal contact, so all recommendations are that pesticide applications to the area will do no good and should not be done. Scabies is a problem for a physician to control.
|
|
What are some of the mites that cause allergic reactions?
Without a doubt, the most common of these has to be the lowly Dust Mite. Unlike "paper mites", these guys are NOT a myth, and in fact may be present in vast numbers in a building. Dust Mites are scavengers, and along with various kinds of organic junk they find to eat, their main diet consists of tiny flakes of dried skin.
These microscopic mites crawl over surfaces, feeding on the bits of organic material, and are so small they easily get blown around in wind drafts. Like all arthropods, dust mites also shed their exoskeleton regularly, and this material is even more likely to become airborne and inhaled, causing large numbers of people to suffer severe allergic responses to it.
Other common mites are those that feed on molds or damp foods, such as Mold Mites, Grain Mites, Cheese Mites, and Cereal Mites. It is not uncommon to actually find PILES of Grain Mites in a cupboard or under the sink, as a result of a large number of them finding some dampness and the resulting mildew growth as food. You might even find an old, forgotten dried salami, with a coating of hundreds of thousands of the mites crawling around on it.
When these microscopic, light colored mites find themselves on our arm, they crawl around. We can feel it, but they may be virtually invisible, so our imagination begins to work and we begin to scratch, and someone reinforces it by saying something is eating you, and away we go.
Any other mites we need to know about?
But of course! The group that includes all the mites currently hosts over 45,000 different kinds, and estimates are that there probably are over 1 million specie of mites. They occupy incredibly diverse environmental niches. One of these niches is on plants, and probably the most common mites you will have on your property will be the plant mites - in particular those called "spider mites".
Spider Mites - also called "red spider" - are nasty little mites of plants, and if you work in your garden or bring plant material indoors you may be bringing the mites in as well. While these mites do not bite animals they still may cause itching and sensitivity if they get onto your skin.
Other mites that could be acquired from contact with plant material is our beloved "chigger", and for those who live in parts of the country or the world where chiggers also live, you likely are already on intimate speaking terms with chiggers. These guys are the early stages of larger, predatory mites, but they like to burrow into the skin around the ankles for awhile, and once they leave the site begins to itch - and itch - and itch some more. Intense itching may last for over a week, until your immune system finally calms down and you stop digging at the spots.
What are some other causes of Itching besides Mites?
There are some other bug-type causes, and there also are lots of non-bug causes.
Bug-related: several tiny little insects are common in homes or offices, and may end up crawling on your arm. These could be "book lice" (which are not really lice), springtails, or thrips.
Book Lice are most properly called Psocids, and like the Mold Mites they feed commonly on molds and mildew growing on damp surfaces. They also may get into foods, in particular those that have been stored too long and may be somewhat deteriorated. Controlling the dampness and maintaining the cupboards with fresh food, and food in sealed containers, is a good first step in their control.
|
