A brief review of mite and tick groups of birds and their acariasis is presented. Birds are hosts to diverse groups of mites and ticks that inhabit the feathers, quills, skin, intracutaneous tissue, subcutaneous tissue, nasal cavity, trachea, lung, air sac and serous membranes of the viscera. Fifty-one families of acarina, 1of which is phoretic, that are parasitic on or in birds have been recognized. Many of them are minimally pathogenic for wild birds. However, they can lead to various health problems and death in parasitized caged and aviary birds, and some groups may bite humans. Birds are also an important animal not only as a host for vector species of acari-borne diseases but also as a healthy carrier of acari-borne pathogens.

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Two new species of the genus Liacarus are described from beech forests of Mt. Tateyama: Liacarus luscus sp. n. and Liacarus tenuilamellatus sp. n. L. luscus is similar to L. latilamellatus Kaneko et Aoki, 1982, but differs from the latter in the prominent lamellar tips with small teeth, the rostrum with two notches, and the longer interlamellar setae. L. tenuilamellatus is distinguishable from the other congeners by the rostrum with two notches, the slender lamellae and the cylindrical lamellar cusps with long lamellar setae, a small triangular structure protruding between the lamellar tips, and interlamellar setae which is far longer than lamellar setae.

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A survey questionnaire was carried out to investigate the relationship between the sense of being bitten by mites and the housing condition of 1, 884 outpatients that visited our dermatological clinic and a healthy group of 1, 084 persons. Also, the difference between the perception of being bitten by mites and the diagnosis was evaluated among the outpatients, mentioned above. Of 1, 884 outpatients, the chief complaint of 112 was mite bites. Of these 112 outpatients, only 25 were diagnosed as having had dermatitis caused by insects, mites or ticks; 17 were scabies, 7 were insects, and only one was caused by mite bites. Therefore, 99% of the patients had the illusion of being bitten by mites. No direct relationship was found between the persons who believed they were bitten by mites and the style or age of their house. About27%of the outpatients and nearly 40% of the healthy group reported having been bitten by mites in the past. In the former, 17.2% of males and 24.8% of females visited other clinics, and in the latter, 11.1% of males and 18.6% of females did likewise. Therefore, females were more sensitive to the perception of being bitten by mites than males in either case. Half of the patients and 80% of the healthy persons who insisted that they had suffered from mite bites, used insecticides for eradication of the mites.

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The immature stages and males of Macrocheles hallidayi, a member of the Macrocheles kraepelini complex, are described on the basis of materials obtained in Sumatera Barat, Indonesia. The protonymph of the species has6setae on genu IV, a condition not previously reported in the family Macrochelidae. Macrocheles aestivus Halliday, 1986 is assigned to the kraepelini complex.

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Surveys of larval trombiculid mites found on wild rodents were performed during the period from October 1994 to June 1997 in Nodagawa River basin, where is an endemic area of Tsutsugamushi disease in Kyoto Prefecture. Larval trombiculid mites classified to 6 genera and 12 species were recovered from 4 species of host rodents. Dominant species in these mites were Leptotrombidium pallidum, Leptotrombidium intermedium and Leptotrombidium palpale, followed by Gahrliepia saduski in Nodagawa River basin. Comparing with the infestation number of mites per host, significant differences were found between two species of hosts, Microtus montebelli and Apodemus speciosus. It was suggested that several species of trombiculid mites have a host preference was for M. montebelli rather thanA. speciosus. L. pallidum or L. intermedium larvae was found twice a year, from late autumn to early winter and from spring to early summer, on two species of host rodents, M. montebelli and A. speciosus. Regarding the emergence of trombiculid mites, larval activities were more remarkable in late autumn than early spring. On M. montebelli, seasonal occurrence patterens of these larvae synchronized with larval activities, but, whereas on A. speciosus, these patterns were more evident in early spring than in late autumn. It seemed that these trombiculid mites prioritize to increase a chance to become nymph than their preference for the host.

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A total of 655 larvae, 329 nymphs and 26 adults(5 males and 21 females)of the ticks, Amblyomma geoemydae, were collected from the Japanese pond turtles, Mauremys japonica, captured in the small impoundment of the Ayu River, Doda, the Atsumi Peninsula, Aichi Prefecture, central Japan. This is the first distributional record of A. geoemydae from Japan excluding the Nansei Islands. In this study site, all stages of ticks were generally found on the hosts during the period from late April to early November. In winter, however, the hosts could not be examined because they overwinter under water of the impoundment.

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