RAIN BUGS !!!
We got a nice gully washing rain yesterday. We found this small (1/4 inch) “rain bug” on our morning walk. I used to see them quite often, well as often as we have rain in West Texas. They are also know as Red Velvet mites, Santa Claus Bugs. My granddad called them “resurrection bugs” as he claimed they could lie dormant in the ground for years during droughts. I found no substantiation for Papa Jim’s story, but I would have a hard time not believing an old West TX Caballero. Also, I would be quick to dispel the rumor that they are used to make the red in red velet cake, NOT TRUE.
Hailing from the family Trombidiidae, there is actually very little known about these creatures – Liam Heneghan, an ecosystem ecologist from DePaul University called them an ‘under-researched enigma’. He did explain that they are chelicerates, making them closely related to spiders and scorpions, and told of their fascinating mating ‘dance’, where the male lays down sperm along a branch and then crafts a silken trail to entice females to come and sit down on his sperm. He also hinted that their bright red color is a warning that the mites have a terrible taste – he said that he’s placed them on anthills and observed no ants moving in for what would seem like an easy meal.
It’s known that the red velvet mites somehow play a supposedly vital role in the decomposition process. But the details of that role are still missing.
Keep finding His magic & mystery on your journey††††††nada te turbe††††jim
Shades of Gray - Denison TX 
Fantastic photos. I think those are what we call Velvet Ants, but not positive.
Carolyn……maybe, but there is also another insect that is a Velvet ant, I think they have wings and are a little larger than the mites……although I hear there are Red Velet mites that grow to 1/2 inch long in India……..shalom en theos…..thanks for looking & as always, love to hear your thoughts†††††jim
Whoa, I’ve never seen such a thing! They look like a fuzzy tick…
Abra……hey, now that you mention it, he does. They are pretty harmless through. I let this one crawl all over my hand. We used to collect herds of them when I was a kid…..of course then I read about the decomposition thing, I have been washing my hands quite often…….shalom en theos………jim
Great post, image and info, never saw one of these, guess they only grow down south, 🙂 MJ
MJ……yep, down south and to the west, ye haw……..shalom en theos…jim
Ah, I thought this was a tarantula at first. look at that fuzzy thing! Awesome photo.
Ashley………that would be one small, good looking red tarantula. I like the little world a lot…..shalom en theos….jim
lol yes it would, but thought it was at first glance of the thumbnail. I love the little world too 🙂