Tiny red spiders

[tosher]

Originally Posted by nmk

Aargh! Please help. Ever since my neighbour had her house extension, we have become infested with these tiny red-spiders which we suspect were brought into the area with the red bricks supplied to build my neighbours extension.

I too have relentlessly searched to identify what these tiny red spider mites are. They are not the typical red spider mites associated with greenhouses and plants, nor the type which feed off birds.

These little things come out in the summer and are red. They are not green, white, brown, or any other colour: just red. They are about 1-2mm in diameter, with females (I'm guessing) being a slightly darker red and much 'rounder.' I'm 99% sure they have 8 legs, and do not have any spots or dots on them.

When I squeeze them the leave little red blood dots. They seem to be attracted to red bricks, heat, and anything white or bright. And they get everywhere! I've noticed them climbing on our second floor window sills and also the roof eaves (so they don't seem to restricted by heights). They scale the walls, window sills, pathway, and are found in abundance whereever there is 'heat.'

They typically disappear during the winter, but magically re-emerge in the summer as it gots hot / warmer thus suggesting that there is a nest somewhere....

Does anyone else suffer from these mites / spiders? And does anyone know of a natural effective predator to kill them?

Please help(!)

We have just moved into a new apartment with a roof terrace and the walls and sills of the windows were coverd in these tiny red spiders. By chance I have found that rose clear ultra stops them in there tracks. Expensive, but have hardly seen any since spraying tham. Hope this helps.

[daloughlin]

I agree with Tosher in that a good but limited application of a general garden chemical like rose clear should do the job. The insect is Clover Mite or Bryobia praetiosa. I have millions each year - generally no problem but where they get too close for comfort, a barrier spray on windowsills etc will keep them at bay. For more info just put clover mite in google.

[mrs bz]

I believe these spiders are actually Clover Mites, not spiders at all. I had them in vast numbers on the outside of my house although primarily on the South and West facing sides. This year was the second year I had noticed them; they first reappeared in April of this year but didn't really get going until June. Two weeks ago I got the pest control people out and they sprayed the outside of the house up to the first floor, including the shingle gulley around the foundations and the patio area on the South and West facing sides of the house. The product they used was called Demand CS; the details they left say it contains Lambda-cyhalothrin.

The guy who did the spraying did say it might not last a week and he couldn't guarantee anything but the good news is that I've had two weeks so far without any mites on the house.

I found a useful website on the subject Clover Mites that doesn't make dealing with clover mites sound like a horror story but offers some more advice on keeping them away from the house.

Ultimately, I'd like the treatment I've had to have got rid of them for the rest of the season but actually I'll be happy with a month for starters. Hope this helps anyone who's troubled by these critters. Best regards BZ

[alekswitk]

Originally Posted by nmk

Aargh! Please help. Ever since my neighbour had her house extension, we have become infested with these tiny red-spiders which we suspect were brought into the area with the red bricks supplied to build my neighbours extension.

I too have relentlessly searched to identify what these tiny red spider mites are. They are not the typical red spider mites associated with greenhouses and plants, nor the type which feed off birds.

These little things come out in the summer and are red. They are not green, white, brown, or any other colour: just red. They are about 1-2mm in diameter, with females (I'm guessing) being a slightly darker red and much 'rounder.' I'm 99% sure they have 8 legs, and do not have any spots or dots on them.

When I squeeze them the leave little red blood dots. They seem to be attracted to red bricks, heat, and anything white or bright. And they get everywhere! I've noticed them climbing on our second floor window sills and also the roof eaves (so they don't seem to restricted by heights). They scale the walls, window sills, pathway, and are found in abundance whereever there is 'heat.'

They typically disappear during the winter, but magically re-emerge in the summer as it gots hot / warmer thus suggesting that there is a nest somewhere....

Does anyone else suffer from these mites / spiders? And does anyone know of a natural effective predator to kill them?

Please help(!)

I know its been a while, but I was wondering if you had any luck with finding out what are they them red spiders at all?

For the past 2 to 3 weeks I have noticed a lot of them around the house.
I'm 39 wks pregnant and I'm a bit worried about bringing a newborn to the house full of spiders I have never seen, especial that I'm terrified of any spiders since I was 7 years old (been bitten by one) I'm ok now as they are only tiny, but I'm worried what if they get bigger and bite? I thought it was strange that when you squash them there is quite a bit of red "blood"??? and the fact that they red, I never seen anything like it.

Please let me know, I will be searching until I'll find something about them

Aleks

[alekswitk]

I think this what daloughlin said its not what I have in the house ( i wish it was I guess)
After I realised there's been a whole conversation going on about them little red things since 2009 I look up and what I have discovered in my house looks nothing like Clover Mite or Bryobia praetiosa - they just look like a little red spiders, and I'm pretty sure they get bigger as I killed on today in the bathroom, but slight bigger then the others.

I trapped one in the glass and gently killed it so I could properly see what it is. I dont have any plants in the house at all and I haven't seen any of them out in the front or back garden.
I have noticed then in the second bedroom the most ( where there is hardly any furniture ) I cant see and cocoons, I thought I killed them all off ( I didnt open the window for at least 5 days after that and still that bedroom is the place I keep finding them the most )

I will try to capture another one and take a picture of it, maybe some on have seen something like that before.

Aleks