Can bird feeders give you bird mites?

The short answer

• Not directly. An Ask Extension entomologist put it plainly: bird mites "are not known to enter homes on bird feeders." They live in nests and are usually only a problem when birds nest on the house itself.
• Mites come indoors when nestlings leave the nest or a nest on the house is abandoned. Iowa State says this migration is common in late spring, and that sparrows, starlings and pigeons are the birds most often involved.
• They bite but cannot live on you. UC Davis says nest mites cannot survive and reproduce on human blood, and Iowa State says bird mites are not a health threat. They starve out over weeks to months.
• The fix is the nest: wait until it is empty, bag it inside out, seal the gaps it was built in, and clean the area. A feeder only matters if it is feeding the House Sparrows and starlings that nest on your walls.
• Tiny mites crawling in a seed bin are a different animal: grain mites, which feed on damp, damaged grain and do not suck blood. If you itch and no one can find a mite, see a doctor.

Not directly. Every university source we read puts bird mites in the nest, not at the feeder. Mites move indoors when nestlings leave a nest built on or in the house, or when that nest is abandoned, and Iowa State says that migration is common in late spring. An Ask Extension entomologist answering a Michigan homeowner in 2021 was blunt: bird mites are usually only a problem when birds nest directly on the house, and they "are not known to enter homes on bird feeders." The feeder's only part is indirect. It can keep House Sparrows and starlings around, and those two nest in eaves and vents.

Two answers circulate. Pest control pages tie bird mites to anything that draws birds to the house, feeders included. Bird pages say mites never come from feeders and stop there. The second is right about the route but skips the case that matters: millet and cracked corn beside a house with an open soffit help a sparrow colony nest on your wall. That nest is where the mites come from.

What a bird mite is#

Two species account for most of what people find indoors. Utah State University names them:

Size is the first test: 0.7 mm in Iowa State's photo, about 1 mm for WSU, a typed period for USU. WSU gives the color as whitish, red when recently fed, or grayish brown. Small but visible: the Ask Extension answer calls bird mites "relatively large mites" and says that if you do not see any, you probably do not have them.

USU gives one survival figure for both, up to a month off a host, and the UC Davis Bohart Museum says most nest mites can survive for months unfed. Our reading of the table: a nest of fowl mites dies out within weeks, a nest of red mites can wait through a season. Bohart adds Ornithonyssus bursa, a barn swallow parasite that also bites people once its host is gone.

How mites get from a nest to your arm#

The sequence is the same in every source:

1. Birds nest on or in the building: eaves, attics and chimneys (WSU), ledges and entryways (Bohart). Iowa State says mites are most abundant near such nests.
2. The host leaves. Maryland says problems typically start when nestlings leave and the hungry mites go looking for more birds.
3. Mites wander in: down the wall to window frames from an outside nest, through ceiling openings from an attic nest (Maryland).
4. They bite. USU says they feed on people when the bird is gone, mostly at night.

Nothing in that path runs through a feeder, and none of the five sources describes one. A seed feeder brought indoors overnight is not a route either: that was the exact worry put to Ask Extension in 2021, and the answer was that bird mites are not known to enter homes on feeders.

Which birds, and where the feeder comes in#

Iowa State names sparrows, starlings and pigeons as the birds most often involved in building infestations, and USU and WSU list the same three. Those are birds a feeder can hold in a neighborhood: the House Sparrow, the European Starling and the Rock Pigeon (our pigeons page covers it). None of them is native, all three nest on buildings, and WSU says their nests may be removed at any time. A native songbird's nest has to wait until the young have left.

Here is what the two cavity nesters eat, from our preference data:

Top top-tier favorite Yes eats readily Some takes occasionally Rare rarely No not a feeder food

House Sparrows rate white proso millet, cracked corn and sunflower hearts at the top. Starlings rate suet and mealworms highest, with hearts, corn, shelled peanuts and fruit next. Both rate safflower and nyjer at the bottom. So the feeder change is food, not removal: safflower in the main feeder, nyjer for finches, suet only in an upside-down feeder, and none of the sparrow staples while a colony is nesting on the house. Our reading: that makes the house a poorer place to raise a brood beside, not a mite treatment.

Getting rid of them: the nest first#

Iowa State calls removing nests on the house, once they are no longer in use, the first step.

1. Find the nest. Check the soffit, gutter, vents, chimney and attic nearest where bites happen. If there are no birds, Bohart's tropical rat mite, which travels up to 100 ft from a rat nest, is the next suspect: rule out rats and mice.
2. Bag it inside out. USU and Maryland both describe the inverted bag method: once the nest is empty, slip a plastic bag over it, close the bag around it, seal it and throw it out. WSU says wear gloves. Then clean the surface the nest sat on.
3. Close the hole the same day. Bohart says removal must be followed by stopping the birds from nesting in the same place. USU and WSU both say seal cracks and screen openings.
4. Clean inside. WSU recommends regular vacuuming and wiping surfaces with a soapy sponge or rubbing alcohol. USU adds hot washing bedding and clothing.

If mites persist, USU suggests silica aerogel dust in cracks and crevices, and Iowa State a residual spray in cracks and corners, not on counters. Follow the label. Bohart's reassurance is the one to remember: even if not every mite is removed, with no host they "will eventually starve."

Nest boxes are a separate case. A box on a post away from the house is a nest you can reach and clean. Clean it between broods, as feeding during nesting season explains, since old nests hold mites.

Mites in the seed bin are a different animal#

Pale specks moving on a bag of seed, with a tan dust on the shelf below, are stored-product mites. WSU's stored-food fact sheet finds them in flour, cereals and pet foods, barely visible but sometimes so many that the surface seems to move. They also feed on mold and on debris in bird and animal nests, which is part of why the two get confused.

Two Purdue points matter for birdseed. The grain mite cannot get into undamaged grain, but cracked grain can be infested throughout. Our reading: cracked corn and broken seed are most at risk. And prevention is dryness: grain held at 13% moisture or below. WSU says the mites themselves are not considered a hazard to animals eating the feed, but the molds they feed on may produce toxins. Do not feed it. Bin it, clean the container, and follow the containers and humidity targets in storing birdseed. Damp, caked seed is also a mold problem, covered in moldy seed.

If you itch and nobody finds a mite#

Bird mites are visible and come from a nest you can point to. With bites but no mites, no nest and no rodents, the Ask Extension answer applies: you probably do not have bird mites.

UC's itching pest note, by three UC Davis entomologists, says the first call for unexplained itching is your family physician or primary health care provider, who should take any samples and send them to an expert. It lists diabetes and stress among the causes of crawling sensations, and says that if no organism is found, you need to look for other causes.

Where this page stops#

• We found no study measuring mites against feeders. The answer rests on how every source says mites move, and on the Ask Extension answer. The food change is our reasoning.
• This is not medical advice. Bohart says bites can cause severe allergic reactions in some people. Our advice: see a doctor for anything more than a few bites.
• Feeder hygiene is separate. Diseases that do spread at feeders are on bird diseases at feeders, with the routine in how to clean a bird feeder.

Ticks are the other parasite people blame on feeders, with a different answer: see do bird feeders attract ticks. Every other feeder problem is matched to its cause on the problems hub.

Frequently asked questions#

Can bird mites come from a bird feeder?

Not in any of the extension guidance we read. The mites live on birds and in their nests, and they move indoors when a nest on or in the house is left empty. In an Ask Extension answer from Michigan in 2021, entomologist Howard Russell said bird mites are usually only a problem when birds nest directly on the house and "are not known to enter homes on bird feeders." The indirect route is real: a feeder can help keep House Sparrows and starlings around, and those are birds that nest in eaves and vents.

How long do bird mites live without a bird?

Weeks, and for one species months. Utah State University says bird mites can survive up to a month off a host. Washington State University splits it by species: northern fowl mites up to 3 weeks without birds, chicken mites up to 8 months. The UC Davis Bohart Museum says most nest mites can survive for months without feeding while they wait for the host to return. That is why removing the empty nest matters more than waiting it out.

Do bird mites live on humans?

No. The UC Davis Bohart Museum says that of the parasitic mites that feed on people, only scabies mites live in human skin. Nest mites bite but do not stay on or in the skin, and they cannot survive and reproduce on human blood. Iowa State calls bird mites a nuisance and annoyance, not a health threat, and WSU says they are not known to transmit disease to humans. Bohart notes that some people can have severe allergic reactions to the bites.

Are the tiny mites in my bird seed bird mites?

Almost certainly not. Pale mites crawling in stored seed, often with a tan dust on the shelf, are stored-product mites such as the grain mite, Acarus siro. Purdue says they feed on the germ of damaged grain and on mold, thrive at 14% moisture and cannot penetrate undamaged grain. They do not suck blood, though WSU says prolonged contact can cause a skin irritation called grocer's itch. Throw the seed out, clean the bin, and store the next bag drier.

Should I take my bird feeder down because of bird mites?

Not for the mites themselves. Take down the nest, not the feeder. What is worth changing is what the feeder serves if House Sparrows or starlings are nesting on your house: switch to safflower and nyjer, which both species rate at the bottom, and drop millet, cracked corn and sunflower hearts. That makes the yard less worth nesting beside without losing the native birds.

Sources and further reading

1. Bird Mites (last reviewed December 2021) Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, Yard and Garden Accidental indoor invaders from nests on or in walls; migration common in late spring as young leave; sparrows, starlings and pigeons most often involved; bite but not a health threat; do not harm stored foods; will probably infest pet birds; length 0.7 mm; remove nests once no longer in use, then crack and crevice treatment
2. Bird Mites (nuisance pest note) Utah State University Extension, IPM Chicken mite and northern fowl mite; size of a period; red after feeding; hosts chickens, pigeons, sparrows, doves, starlings; feed mostly at night; survive up to a month off a host; inverted bag nest removal; seal cracks; hot wash bedding; silica aerogel in cracks
3. Bird Mites Washington State University, PestSense Adults about 1 mm; egg to adult in as little as 7 days; northern fowl mite up to 3 weeks and chicken mite up to 8 months without hosts; starlings, pigeons, sparrows nesting in eaves, attic, chimney; not known to transmit disease to humans; pigeon, house sparrow and starling nests may be removed at any time, songbirds after young leave
4. Bird Mites University of Maryland Extension Problems when nestlings leave the nest; entry down the wall to window frames from outside nests, through the attic and ceiling from inside nests; bag an empty nest, seal and dispose
5. Biting Nest Mites, Information No. 057 Bohart Museum of Entomology, UC Davis Only scabies mites live in human skin; nest mites cannot survive and reproduce on human blood; most survive months unfed; red mite feeds only at night and hides in crevices; Ornithonyssus bursa on barn swallows; tropical rat mite travels up to 100 ft; remove nests once chicks fledge and prevent rebuilding; none transmit pathogens; severe allergic reactions possible
6. Eradication of Mites in home, question #753182 (June 2021) Ask Extension, answered by entomologist Howard Russell Washtenaw County, MI; if you do not see mites you probably do not have bird mites; usually a problem only when birds nest directly on the house; not known to enter homes on bird feeders
7. Grain Mite Infestation: Prevention and Control, Grain Quality Fact Sheet #13 (1993) Linda J. Mason and John Obermeyer, Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service Acarus siro; thrives at 14% moisture, serious at 15 to 18%; prevent at 13% or below; feeds on germ of damaged grain and on mold, cannot penetrate undamaged grain; cracked grain infested throughout; infested feed unpalatable
8. Mites in stored foods (revised 27 Feb 2014) Washington State University Extension, Puyallup Tyroglyphid mites in flour, cereals, pet foods; also on mold and nest debris; prefer moist areas; mite dust; grocer's itch; molds they feed on may produce toxins; discard infested food, sealed containers
9. Pest Notes: Itching and Infestation: What's Attacking Me? UC ANR Publication 7443 L.B. Kimsey, R.B. Kimsey and E.C. Mussen, UC Statewide IPM Program Contact a family physician or primary health care provider first; dermatologists; samples taken by the physician and sent to experts; if no organism is found, look for other causes such as diabetes or stress