Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
 

Register · Log In
HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp
Clickable Guide
Moths Butterflies Flies Caterpillars Flies Dragonflies Flies Mantids Cockroaches Bees and Wasps Walkingsticks Earwigs Ants Termites Hoppers and Kin Hoppers and Kin Beetles True Bugs Fleas Grasshoppers and Kin Ticks Spiders Scorpions Centipedes Millipedes

Calendar
Upcoming Events

Registration is open for the 2024 BugGuide gathering in Idaho July 24-27

Moth submissions from National Moth Week 2023

Photos of insects and people from the 2022 BugGuide gathering in New Mexico, July 20-24

Photos of insects and people from the Spring 2021 gathering in Louisiana, April 28-May 2

Photos of insects and people from the 2019 gathering in Louisiana, July 25-27

Photos of insects and people from the 2018 gathering in Virginia, July 27-29


Previous events
TaxonomyBrowseInfoImagesLinksBooksData
Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Chelicerates (Chelicerata) » Arachnids (Arachnida) » Mites and Ticks (Acari) » Acariformes » Trombidiformes » Prostigs (Prostigmata) » Anystina » Parasitengona » Trombidiina » Velvet Mites and Chiggers (Trombidioidea) » true velvet mites (Trombidiidae) » Allothrombium
Photo#339356
Red Velvet Mite with ant prey - Allothrombium
Copyright © 2009 Andrew Williams

Red Velvet Mite with ant prey - Allothrombium
Overland Park, Johnson County, Kansas, USA
September 27, 2009
Red velvet mite with ant prey

Images of this individual: tag all
Red Velvet Mite with ant prey - Allothrombium red velvet mite - prey ? - Allothrombium
tag · login or register to post comments
Contributed by Andrew Williams on 1 October, 2009 - 4:20pm
Last updated 7 June, 2015 - 7:28am

Moved
Moved from true velvet mites.
… Ray Fisher, 7 June, 2015 - 7:28am login or register to post comments

Feeding
Did you see the mite attack the ant or photograph it later? Also, did you observe it feeding, or just passing it by? I'm working with velvet mites for my PhD, and am running into some stumbling blocks with foraging behavior. It was (before seeing this image) becoming apparent to me these mites are not the vicious predators I once thought, but instead scavenge, or eat eggs. What do you think?
… Ray Fisher, 5 January, 2010 - 2:59pm login or register to post comments

 
as i recall
I found the mite on a rock trying to get at something in a small pit in the rock. It was crouched over the pit trying to reach in there with it's mouth-parts. I couldn't even really tell what it was after at the time. I don't know what happened previous to that, so I'm unsure whether it found the ant dead, or killed it. I suspect it found it. Hope that's helpful, and good luck with your PhD work.
… Andrew Williams, 5 January, 2010 - 3:57pm login or register to post comments

Moved
Moved from ID Request.
… Andrew Williams, 2 October, 2009 - 6:38pm login or register to post comments

Comment viewing options
Select your preferred way to display the comments and click 'Save settings' to activate your changes.

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2024 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology at Iowa State University logo

Printer Friendly Version 		Terms of Use
Privacy Statement
Site Map
Contact