The Surprising Life Of Red Clover Mites In Our Driveways

On Sunday afternoon, I was relaxing in a lawn chair after mowing the grass. While I was taking a break, I noticed some weeds and blades of grass sticking up through the cracks in my driveway. As I thought about spraying them with weed killer, I spotted an ant. I paused to admire how strong and hardworking that tiny little guy was. Then I looked closer—and saw something even smaller. It was one of those strange little climbing bugs, and it was tiny.

I’d seen these things before, but never really stopped to figure out what they were. Turns out, they’re called Red Clover Mites. They’re so small that even if you wear bifocals and get your face just a foot from the pavement, you still can’t tell if they’re spiders or bugs.

Thanks to a quick Google search for "tiny red bugs," I found out they’re Red Clover Mites. Up close, with a zoomed-in photo, they look like weird, creepy alien insects.

The good news? They won’t hurt you. But according to what I read, if you squish one on light-colored clothes, it can leave a stain.

So keep your eyes open this summer—you might spot one of these tiny Red Clover Mites crawling around, too.

merch