What are chiggers, and how do they bite you?

If you go outdoors during the right time of year, you may be bitten by chiggers. But what are these creatures, and why do they attack unsuspecting humans? Listen in as Marshall Brain breaks down the life cycle of the chigger -- and how it can affect you.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to brain Stuff from house stuff marks dot com
where smart happens. H I am Marshall Brain with today's question,
what are chiggers and how do they bite you? If
you've ever been out in the woods or an open
field in the spring, summer, or fall, you may have

(00:22):
gotten chiggers around your waistband or on your ankles. They
leave red, itchy bumps on your skin. Chiggers are the
larva of mites called harvest mites or scrub mtes. Like
ticks and spiders, might go through several biological stages in
their life cycle. They begin as eggs, hatches larva, developing

(00:43):
the nymphs, and finally become adults. Nymph and adult harvest
mites feed mostly on plant life, and they don't bother
people or animals, but in the larval stage they go parasitic.
After a parasitic chigger hatches, it finds a good position
on tall grass or other vegetation so it can spring
onto a passing animal. When it finds an animal, it

(01:05):
attaches to the animal to gather the protein it needs
to grow into the nymph stage. Chiggers don't burrow under
your skin as many people believe, nor do they feed
on animal blood. They actually feed on the fluids in
skin cells. To get to those fluids, they attach themselves
to a skin pour or a hair follicle, and they

(01:28):
inject this digestive engine that ruptures the cells. The enzyme
also hardens the surrounding skin tissue, forming a sort of
straw for sucking the skin cell fluids. The whole process
irritates the skin, and it causes an itchy red bump
that can last for several days. Chiggers are only about

(01:49):
half a millimeter long, and so they're too small to
see with the naked eye. This invisibility is the reason
so many people believe chiggers burrow under your skin. You
usually find chiggers in the woods or in tall grass,
and they're especially common in damp areas with a lot
of vegetation. They're attracted to concealed moist conditions on hosts, too,

(02:12):
so they tend to attach to skin under tight clothing
such as socks and underwear, or in concealed areas of
the body like the groin and the armpits. One way
to decrease the chance of chiger bites is to wear
loose clothing when you're in the woods or other infested areas.
You should also take a shower as soon as you
get home from an outdoor expedition to remove any chickers

(02:35):
before they have a chance to attach to your skin.
In North America, chiggers don't spread any diseases to humans,
but chicker bites can get infected. You should keep the
irritated area clean and refrain as much as possible from scratching,
although that's sometimes nearly impossible. In other parts of the world,
chiggers may pose a more serious threat. One commonly known

(02:59):
remor for chigger bites is to put nail polish on
it to reduce the itchiness. This doesn't kill the chigger
or treat the bite in any way. It simply seals
off the air, which keeps the sore from itching so badly.
If you want to apply something to relieve the itching,
it's probably better to use a salve or a cream

(03:19):
that contains antihistamines, or something like cala drill or hydrocordizone ointment.
If the welts continue to irritate you for more than
a couple of weeks, they might be infected, and you
should probably go see a doctor. Be sure to check
out our new video podcast, Stuff from the Future. Join
how Stuff Work staff as we explore the most promising

(03:40):
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