Chicken Mite

(Dermanyssus gallinae), a parasitic, blood sucking gamasid mite. Length, approximately 0.75 mm. It is very widely distributed; in the USSR it is almost ubiquitous. The chicken mite parasitizes poultry (chickens, pigeons) and wild birds. It settles in nests and cracks in the walls of poultry houses, usually attacking the birds at night. When there is massive reproduction, the chicken mite emaciates chickens and lowers their egg production. It is a carrier of some viruses (including chicken encephalitis). It often bites persons who work in poultry houses, causing itching and dermatitides. Control measures call for disinfestation of poultry houses.