Cheese mite (Tyrophagus casei) in cheese, coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM). Cheese mites are usually found in cheese, but can also live in

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Cheese mite (Tyrophagus casei) in cheese, coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM). Cheese mites are usually found in cheese, but can also live in corn and flour. For many cheeses the presence of mites is undesirable, but in some cheeses they are used to produce a required flavour. These cheeses are considered ripe when covered in a grey powder of living and dead mites and mite skin and faeces. Cheese mites reproduce rapidly, with a life cycle of only 18 days. They can cause dermatitis (skin inflammation) in cheese workers. Mites are usually less than millimetres long.

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Size: 3364px × 3656px
Photo credit: © DR. KEITH ROBERTS/KIM FINDLAY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animal, arachnid, arachnida, casei, cheese, coloured, eating, food, invertebrates, mite, nature, pest, production, sem, spoilage, tyrophagus, wildlife, zoology