There are over 40,000 named species of mite, and if estimates for unnamed species are included, then up to 1 million may grace the planet. By comparison, there are approximately 40,000 species of vertebrates, half of them fish, alive today. Mites are predators, parasites, herbivores and detritivores. They live in the dark depths of the ocean, in the lungs of birds, on the leaves of rainforest plants, and in human clothes and bedding. They are vectors...