mites, are they friend or foe?

[mobius]

i still think they look like mold mites but i don't see any mold anywhere so i don't see a reason why they would hang around my garden. i do have a dusty room though, and i probably don't clean as often as i should.

one thing about the Oribatid... the pics i saw show them being dark-colored with very pronounced, bulbous-shaped/oval bodies. these mites did not have those bodies, they did not look like miniature crabs or snails which is what the Orbitads resembles. they were also light, milky white, translucent.. i could see their guts inside.

i will have to take another look tomorrow, because i didn't really notice their mouthparts. i will catch one with its body flipped over maybe that will give a better view. these things had antennas i believe and they had those little hairs around their abdomens, but a lot of these mites seem to have those hairs.

 

[medicalmj]

Oribatid mites and thier cousins Astigmatid mites come in a lot of shapes and colors. If you are using FFOF and didnt have some of the aforementioned soil mites I'd be suprised. You need a some sort magnification to see most of these mites unless you got really good eyes. I have at least two distinct species. One of each of the above. The Astigmatid I have is a Histiostomatidae mite, which IS "light, milky white, translucent.. (and you can) see their guts inside. The Oribatid mite I have has a more round "shell" and is crab like with two long legs at the front.

I'll say it one last time, unless you have visible mold, you dont have mold mites. Mold mites feed on molds, like mold on cheese or wheat etc...and are often named after the type of mold they feed on.

 

[mobius]

this is what they looked like to me, never got a good look at their mouthparts, i think i just need to invest in a better (usb) scope. thre was a slight hint of amber on the tips of their legs and mouth. i will take your word they are not mold mites but doesn't molasses create beneficial fungii, isn't fungii = mold ?

also found a colony of springtails, breeding and having a good time near my trays, and few fungus gnats on the topsoil (!), these bastards never seem to go away completely, i've had them every grow though they never seem to become a major problem for me.

 

[Avinash.miles]

^^ mosquito dunks