Today on Animal Fact Files we’re talking about face mites. A mite is a small arachnid that may live as a parasite, such as today’s subjects. There are plenty of mites in the world and this episode is about the two species specifically found on human skin. There are other species in the genus as the two species we’re discussing today, but these other species aren’t commonly found on humans.

Face mites are considered the most abundant ectoparasite to commonly use humans as a host. Both species can be found on the same human at the same time. One species occurs in greater density and is larger reaching sizes of up to 0.4mm in length. Yeah, these little ones are microscopic. So at least there’s not much concern of actually finding them on your skin. While this species may be more abundant, it tends to be found in more specific places on the human body - namely the face - hence the common name. The other species may be generally less populous but is more commonly found on the face as well as the chest and neck. Though either species can be found just about anywhere on a human’s skin… yes, even there.

Men tend to have more face mites than women. Yay, almost two thirds of you get a prize for more face mites. Oh and there’s no escaping them. It doesn’t matter where you’re from, everybody eventually has face mites. Infants don’t have them, but early in life these little critters are passed on to young humans through close physical contact. So you probably have your parents to thank for them, but really you can get them from anyone close enough to you. And no, living with as little physical contact as you can muster won’t help you either. There are plenty of studies that suggest 100% of humans have face mites by the age of 70. Lucky us!

Face mites live in our hair follicles and eat our skin oil. Yum. These animals are sometimes called eyelash mites because they’re commonly found in eyelash follicles. They’re also most common on our foreheads, cheeks, and noses. All these areas produce plenty of skin oil for these mites to munch on, and it’s here they are born, live, and die. Isn’t that comforting? It means you are never, ever alone. It also means there are animals having sex on your face. So, you’re welcome.

Face mites come out at night to mate. They’ll crawl out of their hair follicle homes, find each other, do the deed, then head back to their home to lay eggs. Well, the females do anyway. The males end up like cephalopod males. The eggs are laid in the hair follicle and take a few days to hatch. A few days later the larvae will develop into nymphs who go through a few stages before becoming adults. All in all the process takes about two weeks. And these are arthropods, so each stage leaves behind an empty exoskeleton, y’know, on your face.

It was once believed that face mites are completely harmless in their existence on our faces, and currently it’s believed that five or few individuals per square centimeter is still benign, but there’s been research into the potential of face mites causing skin conditions like rosacea. Don’t go grabbing the nearest soap and scrub, though - they’re gonna be there whether we like it or not, they’re part of our natural skin biome, so just embrace them - and go see your doctor if they seem to be causing problems.

For more facts on face mites check out the links in the description. Thank you to Mugiwara for today’s request! Give a thumbs up if you learned something new today, and thank you for watching Animal Fact Files.