Erythraeidae is a family 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 ...

s belonging to the

Trombidiformes The Trombidiformes are a large, diverse order of mites. Taxonomy In 1998, Trombidiformes was divided into the Sphaerolichida and the Prostigmata. The group has few synapomorphies by which it can be defined, unlike the other major group of aca ...

Larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

l forms of these mites are parasitic on various other

arthropod Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...

s, for example harvestmen, but the adults are free-living

predator Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...

s. These oval mites are rather large, usually reddish coloured and densely hairy. The legs, especially the first and fourth pairs, are long and adapted for running. They have either one or two pairs of eyes and can be distinguished from related families microscopically by the presence of a single claw on the

tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it connects ...

of the palp. The larvae bite a hole into the cuticula of the host and use a

stylostome The stylostome is a funnel- or channel-like structure formed in response to trombiculid mites. The formation is not caused by the mouthparts of the mites, because these mites do not have needle-like mouthparts as other hematophagous animals have ...

, which acts like a drinking straw, to drink body fluids dissolved tissues. The larvae of two described species of ''

Leptus ''Leptus'' is a genus of large mites belonging to the family Erythraeidae; they resemble members of the related genus ''Balaustium'', but can be distinguished by the eyes, which in ''Leptus'' species are set much further forward on the body than ...

'' feed on

bee Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyly, monophyletic lineage within the ...

s: ''

Leptus ariel ''Leptus'' is a genus of large mites belonging to the family Erythraeidae; they resemble members of the related genus '' Balaustium'', but can be distinguished by the eyes, which in ''Leptus'' species are set much further forward on the body than ...

'' lives on the European honey bee in

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

, and ''

Leptus monteithi ''Leptus'' is a genus of large mites belonging to the family Erythraeidae; they resemble members of the related genus ''Balaustium'', but can be distinguished by the eyes, which in ''Leptus'' species are set much further forward on the body than ...

'' is a parasite of a ''

Leioproctus ''Leioproctus'' is a genus in the plaster bee family Colletidae. Its members are primarily found in Australasia and temperate South America, and include the most common native bees in New Zealand. Species It includes the following species: *' ...

'' species ( Colletidae) in

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

.UMMZ
Genus ''Leptus'' Latreille, 1796
(with drawing of ''L. ariel'') File:Harvestman 01.jpg File:Erythraeidae parasitic larva 01.jpg

Footnotes

References

*Meyer, Magdalena K. P. & Ryke, P. A. J.: Nine new species of the superfamily Erythraeoidea (Acarina: Trombidiformes) associated with plants in South Africa. ''Acarologia I''. *Joel Hallan's Biology Catalog
Erythraeidae

External links

* InsectImages.org
Pictures of a ''Leptus'' sp.
Trombidiformes Taxa named by Anthonie Cornelis Oudemans Acari families {{Trombidiformes-stub