Monitoring Red Mite Infestations
Red Mite Monitoring Packs
Proactively monitoring red mite activity enables producers to intervene before mite levels get out of hand and impact productivity.
We offer red mite monitoring packs that contain everything you need to get started.
Packs include:
- 10 x Trap Location tags
- 10 x Mite traps and cable ties
- 1 x Red mite counting grid
- 1 x Red mite counting scale for visual assessment
- Collection bags
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Top Tips
- It’s recommended to use 10 traps per 16,000 birds, which should be evenly distributed throughout the shed – on both upper and lower tiers for multi-tier systems.
- Place traps every 4-6 weeks for most effective monitoring.
- Good locations for traps are towards the end of perches and near the mesh division between colonies, as mites living on this mesh can travel down onto perches.
- Avoid putting traps in the middle of perches, as red mite will return to their ‘safe place’ after their meal, feeding on the first birds they reach rather than travelling further along the perch.
- Leave the traps in place for 48 hours. On collection, place the traps in individual bags and then freeze for 48 hours. This will kill the mites and make them easier to count.
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Monitoring Red Mite Infestations
If one mite has eight eggs per clutch, in just 12 short weeks you end up with 244,140,625 mites! This little problem can quickly become out of control if not properly handled.
Regular red mite monitoring will help you to intervene before mite populations spiral out of control, protecting bird health, welfare, and productivity.
Frequently asked questions
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Why use a trapping system?
Visual assessment of red mite activity alone can be challenging. Mite hide away during the daytime and only come out to feed when the house lights are off. This means what you see during the day is often just the tip of the iceberg. A trapping system helps to quantify the level of infestation and monitor populations over time.
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Where should I place the traps?
Try to position the traps between typical poultry red mite clusters and where the hens rest. The traps need to be along the pathways that mites will be travelling. We recommend using 10 traps per 16,000 birds, evenly distributed throughout the shed, on both upper and lower tiers for multi-tier systems.
Mark trap locations with a label so that you can identify which area of the shed the traps have come from and so that the same location is used each time they are placed. This will enable you to monitor population growth throughout the house.
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How long should traps be left in place?
Leave the traps in place for 48 hours to provide mites sufficient opportunity to discover them, so you can get a good representation of infestation levels. When you collect the traps, place them in individual bags and put them in a freezer for 48 hours. This will kill the mites, making them easier to count.
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How often should I be placing traps?
Place traps every 4-6 weeks, using the same locations each time. This will enable you to monitor population growth throughout the house and intervene before populations get out of control.
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How do I assess the traps?
Assess one trap at a time so that they do not get mixed up. Remove the inner cardboard and carefully empty the contents onto a mite monitoring grid.
Visually assess the number of mites and compare them to the mite monitoring scale. Record the result along with the date and trap location. It can be useful to take a picture and keep this in your records for future comparison.
Red mite monitoring traps containing less than 10 mites would be considered as very low; up to 100 mites would indicate a low infestation; 100-250 would be considered a moderate infestation. Over 250 mites in a trap would be considered a high infestation and will almost certainly be adversely affecting the flock.
Share the results with your veterinary practice for further advice on whether treatment is required.
