A Contribution to Our Knowledge of the Bionomics of the Common North American Chigger, Eutrombicula Alfreddugesi (Oudemans) with a Description of a Rapid Collecting Method

Abstract

Summary 1. A new and rapid method of collecting chiggers in nature is described. 2. Rarely do chiggers fed on blood and never is it their chief source of food. An extraoral digestion of epidermal cells is practiced by this parasite. 3. Chiggers overwinter in the larval stage deep in the ears and on the eyelids of rabbits, squirrels, and possibly other animals. 4. “Red-bugs” are negatively geotropic and possess amazing speed for their size. 5. Chiggers are frequently preyed upon by members of the mite family Bdellidae.