Slug mite

Taxobox
name = Slug mite


image_width =
image_caption =
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Arthropoda
subphylum = Chelicerata
classis = Arachnida
subclassis = Acari
superordo = Acariformes

ordo = Prostigmata
subordo = Eupodina
unranked_familia =
superfamilia = Tydeoidea
familia = Ereynetidae
genus = "Riccardoella"
species = "R. limacum"
binomial = "Riccardoella limacum"
binomial_authority = (Schrank, 1776)

The slug mite is a member of the Acari (mite) family which is parasitic on slugs and snails. Slug mites are very small (less than 0.5 mm in length), white, and can be seen to move very rapidly over the surface of their host, particularly under the shell rim and near the pulmonary aperture. While once thought to be benign mucophages, more recent studies have shown that they actually subsist on the host's blood,cite journal
last = Barker
first = G. M.
authorlink =
coauthors = G. W. Ramsay
title = The slug mite "Riccardoella limacum" (Acari: Ereynetidae) in New Zealand
journal = New Zealand Entomologist
volume = 6
issue = 4
pages = 441–443
publisher =
location =
date = 1978
url = http://www.petsnails.co.uk/docs/Volume_6-4-441-443.pdf
doi =
id =
accessdate = ] cite journal
last = Baker
first = R. A.
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = The food of "Riccardoella limacum" (Schrank) - Acari-Trombidiformes and its relationship with pulmonate molluscs
journal = Journal of Natural History
volume = 4
issue = 4
pages = 521–530
publisher =
location =
date = October–December 1978
url =
doi =
id =
accessdate = ] and may bore into the host's body to feed.

Hosts

At least 31 species of mollusc are exploited. Common hosts include the following:
*"Agriolimax agrestis"
*"Arion ater"
*"Arion hortensis"
*"Helix aspersa"
*"Helix pomatia"
*"Limax maximus"
*"Milax budapestensis"
*"Milax gagates"
*"Milax sowerbyi"

Taxonomy

The slug mite was first identified in 1710 by entomologist René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur. Three species were subsequently named, though they were synonymized as "Riccardoella limacum" in 1946.

Economic impact and treatment

Slug mites are a concern for commercial and hobbyist breeders of snails; as little six mites can sicken an individual and make it susceptible to infection by threadworms and bacteria such as "Pseudomonas aeruginosa". Countermeasures include regular washing and introduction of "Hypoaspis miles", a predatory species of mite which feeds upon slug mites.

External links

* [http://www.petsnails.co.uk/problems/mites.html#start Pet Snail & Slug Problems: Mites]

References