These tiny, bright red mites are less than 1/4 inch long, but they stand out in mosses, other vegetation and bare ground early in spring when most everything is still drab. Because the differences in the species of this family are microscopic, only the genus can be assigned from these images. They crawl through vegetation looking for insect eggs to eat.
These mites are commonly seen in spring at both Nature Centers.
The content of NatureSearch is provided by dedicated volunteer Naturalists of Fontenelle Forest who strive to provide the most accurate information available. Contributors of the images retain their copyrights. The point of contact for this page is: Roland Barth.