Tiny black bugs??

[Anonymous Chicken]

Hello,

A few days ago we noticed a lot of tiny black bugs on various surfaces in our house. Could they be coming from our chickens? Has anyone else had these? (We currently have snow on the ground.) Thanks!

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

I don't think mites would leave a chicken host as they are parasites. You don't have any chicken or other bird feathers in the house? I breed crickets for my frogs and they start out really tiny. Baby spiders are teeny tiny little black dots. Maybe you could stick some on some clear tape and try to magnify them to get a better look. If you don't have a magnifying glass you could take a picture and zoom in.

 

[Ted Brown]

Mites live in nestboxes, perches, etc, NOT on the chicken. The mites crawl onto the chickens at night, bite them, then crawl back off.

The Northern Fowl Mite DOES live on the host, they will leave (or fall off?) and can survive off the host for a number of weeks (3-4?). Red mites (perhaps others?) live in cracks/crevices/etc. and come out at night to feed as you have described. I am currently going through an infestation and have done considerable research, can provide authoritative sources if anyone is interested.

I brought one of my birds inside to a brooder box while I was treating her; there was a cage inside the box and the bird preferred to sit on top. When we lifted her for treatment we saw a number of "tiny black bugs" on the box, captured a few (clear plastic tape), used a professional camera/lens then used Photoshop to enlarge in order to identify what they were (see https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/microscopic-bugs.1425540/).

The NFM will transfer easily to a human if the bird is picked up and can be transported into a home if one is not careful. I have no experience with Red mites so cannot speak about them.

I recommend you examine your birds carefully to verify that they do not have mites. If they do then you have your source and need to take steps to get rid of them (this is a process of weeks with repeated treatments).

 

[aart]

Did you ever capture any for magnifying glass inspection?

Not sure if its that kind of mite, though, because they seem to be black, not grayish or white.

Did they leave a red smear when you squish them?

Kind of worried about our parrots and finches, though. Are there any mites that can infest both chickens and pet birds?

If in fact the little black specs are poultry mites, yes I would be concerned with any bird they come into contact with.

and a lot on our chicken (but none on the ones outside, although I know that they might be infested but we can't see the mites on them)

You have a chicken living in your house?


Check all your birds, inside and out, over real well for mites and/or lice.

Google images of lice/mites and their eggs before the inspection so you'll know what you're looking for.

Part the feathers right down to the skin around vent, head/neck and under wings.

Best done well after dark with a strong flashlight/headlight, easier to 'catch' bird and also to check for the mites that live in structure and only come out at night to feed off roosting birds.

Wipe a white paper towel along the underside of roost to look for red smears(smashed well fed mites).

Good post about mite ID by Lady McCamley:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-chicken-has-mites-now-what.1273674/page-2#post-20483008

 

[Alaskan]

Mites live in nestboxes, perches, etc, NOT on the chicken. The mites crawl onto the chickens at night, bite them, then crawl back off.

Lice live 100% on the chickens.

Google some chicken mite photos... see if that is what you have.

 

[aart]

they're so small that they're hard to see!

Try to get some into a jar, scoop up with a piece of paper, then put jar in the freezer for a couple hours. Then get out your magnifying glass or microscope.

Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

Mites live in nestboxes, perches, etc, NOT on the chicken

Poultry mites do, and scaly leg mites...... but yes, roost mites do not.
But I doubt there are any kind few chicken mites in your house.
Good post about mite ID by Lady McCamley:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-chicken-has-mites-now-what.1273674/page-2#post-20483008

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

Are your chickens in the house? Because if they aren't then it's not likely they would leave their host. Do you have some fruits or produce on the counter it could have come from? Or firewood? Are you sure they weren't baby spiders?

 

[Anonymous Chicken]

Mites live in nestboxes, perches, etc, NOT on the chicken. The mites crawl onto the chickens at night, bite them, then crawl back off.

Lice live 100% on the chickens.

Google some chicken mite photos... see if that is what you have.

Thanks! We Googled it, and this is what they look like:

 

[Anonymous Chicken]

The Northern Fowl Mite DOES live on the host, they will leave (or fall off?) and can survive off the host for a number of weeks (3-4?). Red mites (perhaps others?) live in cracks/crevices/etc. and come out at night to feed as you have described. I am currently going through an infestation and have done considerable research, can provide authoritative sources if anyone is interested.

I brought one of my birds inside to a brooder box while I was treating her; there was a cage inside the box and the bird preferred to sit on top. When we lifted her for treatment we saw a number of "tiny black bugs" on the box, captured a few (clear plastic tape), used a professional camera/lens then used Photoshop to enlarge in order to identify what they were (see https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/microscopic-bugs.1425540/).

The NFM will transfer easily to a human if the bird is picked up and can be transported into a home if one is not careful. I have no experience with Red mites so cannot speak about them.

I recommend you examine your birds carefully to verify that they do not have mites. If they do then you have your source and need to take steps to get rid of them (this is a process of weeks with repeated treatments).

Thank you! Does the NFM type feed off of humans? How do you get them out of your house if so? And are there any specific types of treatments you have to use? Are you having success with your treatments? One thing that I didn't mention is, a while after we first noticed the bugs, we had to bring an injured chicken into our house. Today we noticed TONS of the bugs on her. YUCK!

Edit: Can they infest other/pet birds as well? We have parrots and finches, and that might be a problem...

 

[Ted Brown]

Thank you! Does the NFM type feed off of humans? How do you get them out of your house if so? And are there any specific types of treatments you have to use? Are you having success with your treatments? One thing that I didn't mention is, a while after we first noticed the bugs, we had to bring an injured chicken into our house. Today we noticed TONS of the bugs on her. YUCK!

Edit: Can they infest other/pet birds as well? We have parrots and finches, and that might be a problem...

From what I understand NFM will bite humans and can cause irritation but do not live and propagate while on a human host. I believe this is the case with other mites but am not certain as my issue is NFM. As I and others have said Red mites live off the host and can survive for many months without feeding so definitely more of a concern if they end up in your home.

I cannot offer any advice on how to get rid of them once they are in the house but do recall reading something that suggested it can be a major undertaking. Use Google BUT you need to identify specifically what mite you have as your course of action will change (NFM you can just wait and within a few weeks they will die; Red mites are much more difficult to get rid of both in a coop or in the home).

I have used two treatments - Permethrin (purchased from Tractor Supply, cheap) and 99.5% sulfur powder (also cheap I got it from my local feed store), There are a number of other treatments but can be expensive and/or can mean that there is period of time during which eggs cannot be eaten. You need to do your research, lots of information available online.

This is my first encounter with mites so I am far from an expert. What I can tell you is it a serious undertaking to get rid of them. Nothing is a "once and done" as most treatments will only kill adult mites and you need to repeat treatments in order to deal with new mites that are in larvae form when you start the treatments. I started with Permethrin spray on a Day 1, 5, 14 cycle. This cycle did NOT work in my case so I switched to sulfur powder on a weekly basis and will continue that for the next weeks until I am certain that I have cleared them out. In general terms you need to apply these two to the vent area, under wings, on the back, neck and on the chest at a minimum; care to ensure that you avoid the head area as chickens have delicate respiratory systems. In retrospect I cannot say that Permethrin does not work as I may not have been persistent enough with it.

You also need to clear out your coop (best to burn the bedding) and spray Permethrin over all surfaces, cracks, etc. again on a repeated cycle to deal with the various life stages.

As far as other birds: mites are spread a number of ways but very commonly from wild birds either eating your chicken's feed or otherwise in and around the coop/run. I am building an expanded covered run to avoid droppings hitting the run area, will cease allowing free range and concentrate on prevention in a closed space. I am not certain but think that you must assume that your parrots and finches are susceptible and should be isolated from your chickens asap if they are not already. As you know mites can be transferred by humans so change your clothes and have a shower before you come in contact.

Again best of luck.