Farmers' Bulletin 801. 



Fig. 1.— First nymphal stage of the chicken mit 

 unfed. Greatly enlarged. (Original.) 



poultry houses the injury to the fowls is not at once apparent, but the 

 constant blood loss and irritation are showTi by decreased egg pro- 

 duction and the poor condition of the flesh of fowls. In heavily 



infested coops it is not unusual 

 for the chickens to become 

 droopy and weak, with pale 

 comb and wattles. Sitting hens 

 desert their nests and thus ruin 

 the eggs or, as is often the case, 

 they are found dead on the nest, 

 being killed outright by the 

 attack of thousands of mites. 

 In extreme cases a considerable 

 percentage of the fowls suc- 

 cumb, even though not sitting, 

 and all are so weakened as to be 

 very susceptible to various dis- 

 eases. 



DISTRIBUTION AND ABUNDANCE. 



While the species sometimes 

 becomes very numerous m the 

 chicken houses in the northern part of the United States, the shorter 

 breeding season there usually makes it of les§ importance than in 

 the South where breed- 

 ing continues through- 

 out the year with little 

 or no interruption. 

 Although many assert 

 that dampness has 

 much to do with the 

 abundance of the 

 chicken mite, experi- 

 ence hassho\vn that the 

 mite occurs In rather 

 greater numbers in the 

 semiarid and arid re- 

 gions of the Southwest 

 than in the more humid 

 parts of the South. 



LIFE HISTORY AND HABITS. 



Blood is absolutely 

 essential for the devel- 

 opment of this mite m 

 all stages. The mite feeds almost entirely at night, except that it 

 often feeds on hens on nests. 



Fig. 2.— Female chicken mite before feeding, greatly enlarged. 

 Mouth parts at right more highly magnified. (Original.) 



