Several days ago I noticed some itching red bumps below my waistline. The itching was mild and only a couple of them developed a white head in the center. Then the next day, this story came out in the NewsLeader.
These are the bites of an Oak Leaf Itch Mite, aka. Pyemotes herfsi. It has a complex story and we are not their intended prey. They are thought to have originated in Europe, has been recorded from Australia, India, Egypt, Chile and most recently, the United States. According to the Penn State Extension story:
"The first recognition of this mite in the U. S. occurred in Kansas in the autumn of 2004 where it was estimated to have affected around 19,000 people. Since then it has been reported from Illinois, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas and in 2007, Pennsylvania (Lancaster County)."
These mites feed on many different insects but when running short, they come after us. One of their common victims they feed on are periodical cicada egg nests and this is cicada season as we can hear out in our back yard. The mites proliferate when the cicadas emerge.
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| Pyemotes herfsi - Pest and Diseases Image Library, Bugwood.org |
Then News-Leader has this gallery of cicada photos. The mite seen above is virtually invisible to us, measuring 0.2 mm long. More from the News-Leader:
"The species commonly feeds on the larvae of midges or flies that form galls, or growths that develop on plants as a reaction to insects and mites feeding on them, on the edges of pin oak leaves. Once their development is complete, they drop from the tree and can land on (and bite) humans and animals. "
If you start feeling the itch and seeing the bumps, "don't do anything rash."(Sorry about that. ) Aside from the possibility of a secondary infection from scratching, the rash will diminish with time and the cicada season will be over soon.
