Article: Mighty Mites Ubiquitous, Inconspicuous, Harmful, Helpful.(Agricultural Research Service)(Brief Article)

Mites have successfully colonized nearly every known habitat on Earth. They thrive in polar and alpine extremes, tropical lowlands, and desert barrens, surface and mineral soils to depths of 32 feet, cold and hot surface springs, and subterranean waters with temperatures as high as 50 [degrees] C. They live in freshwater streams, ponds, lakes, and seawater--even at ocean depths of 15,000 feet.

Mites are among the oldest of all terrestrial animals, with fossils known from the early Devonian period--nearly 400 million years ago.

Mites are also incredibly diverse, second only to insects in the number of species known to live on Earth. Yet the 48,200 species ...

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