what is a water mite

Water mites are tiny aquatic arthropods that are more closely related to land-dwelling spiders, ticks, scorpions, and mites than they are to other aquatic macroinvertebrates. They have a round body mostly comprised of the abdomen, with a very small head, and four pairs of legs. Water mites breathe by absorbing dissolved oxygen all over their body surface and can survive in dissolved oxygen concentrations as low as 1 part per million, making them potentially well suited to live in waters polluted by nutrients. Most water mites are predators that eat zooplankton or other invertebrate larvae, while some are parasitic, and others eat plants or detritus. Parasitic mites and parasitic juvenile mites generally feed on aquatic insects, although some feed on mussels. Water mites can be found in a wide range of freshwater habitats, but they prefer to live in still waters, such as ponds, slow-moving rivers, and streams.