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mite

Mites are small arachnids (eight-legged arthropods). Mites are not a defined taxon, but the name is used for members of several groups of the class Arachnida. Mites span two large orders of arachnids, the Acariformes and the Parasitiformes, which were historically grouped together in the subclass Acari, but genetic evidence suggests are not closely related. The Parasitiformes include ticks, which are sometimes semantically distinguished from mites. Most mites are tiny, less than 1 mm (0.04 in) in length, and have a simple, unsegmented body plan. The small size of most species makes them easily overlooked; some species live in water, many live in soil as decomposers, others live on plants, sometimes creating galls, while others again are predators or parasit… more »