2l8 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I4I 



Caloglyphus sp. 



Natural hosts. — Blattella germanica and Periplaneta americana, 

 U.S.A. (Piquett and Fales, 1952) : Mite feeds on organic matter but 

 can reduce the vigor of a cockroach colony. 



Tyrophagus lintneri (Osborne) 



Common name. — Mushroom mite. 



Associate. — Pycnoscelus surinamcnsis, U.S.A. (Roth and WilHs, 

 unpublished data, 1953) : Mite determined by Dr. E. W. Baker (per- 

 sonal communication, 1953). Although this mite was found on the 

 cockroach, it is a known pest in stored foods (Baker and Wharton, 

 1952) and probably was brought into the culture with food. Rau 

 (1924) reported that the food of Blatta orientaUs often became in- 

 fested with this species, but it did not affect the health or mortality of 

 the cockroaches in his culture. 



Tyrophagus noxius A. Z. 



Natural host. — Periplaneta americana, U.S.A. (Roth and Willis, 

 unpublished data, 1953) : Mite determined by Dr. E. W. Baker (per- 

 sonal communication, 1953). Mites were found in the oothecal cavity 

 of a female cockroach that had been isolated for her entire adult life. 

 The mites were in a closely packed mass behind a plug of what ap- 

 peared to be feces, disintegrated eggs, and dried blood; none of the 

 mites were visible until this plug was removed. Baker (personal 

 communication, 1953) stated that the mite is probably not parasitic 

 and that species of the genus feed on organic matter. 



Rhizoglyphus tarsalus Banks 



Natural host. — Periplaneta americana, U.S.A. (Rau, 1940a) : Not 

 normally parasitic on cockroaches, but the mites became so numerous 

 at times they would attack living as well as dead and dying cock- 

 roaches. 



Family GLYCIPHAGIDAE 



Chaetodactylus sp. 



Synonymy. — Trichotarsus sp. [Baker and Wharton, 1952]. 



Natural host. — Leucophaea maderae, Puerto Rico (Sein, 1923) : 

 Mites found on cockroach's thorax and particularly among the folds 

 of the wings (Sein, 1923). Mites of this genus are found infesting 

 organic matter (Baker and Wharton, 1952). 



