Take the itch out of summer
Every Missourian knows chiggers are the worst pests in the summer months. Chiggers are so widely known -- and feared -- that in certain months they are the most often searched for topic on the Missouri Department of Conservation website.
First, they appear as annoying red bumps. Then the itch begins and spreads. But a little education can go a long way when it comes to taking this itch out of your summer.
According to the MDC website, www.MissouriConservation.org, chiggers are not bugs and are not classified as an insect. They're a juvenile form of a specific family of mites.
Although they're almost invisible to the unaided eye, when several chiggers cluster together near an elastic waistband or wrist watch you might see their bright red color. A chigger bite itches so intensely because the chigger injects saliva into its victim after attaching to the skin. The saliva contains a powerful digestive enzyme that literally dissolves the skin cells it contacts. It is this liquefied tissue, not blood, which the chigger ingests and uses for food.
Chiggers are most active in afternoons, when ground temperatures are between 77 and 86 degrees. They're completely inactive when temperatures fall below 60 degrees and they actively avoid objects hotter than 99 degrees. A sunny rock is a safe place to sit in a chigger-infested area.
An easy line of defense against chiggers includes tightly woven socks, long pants, long sleeved shirts, and high shoes or boots. Tucking pant legs inside boots and buttoning cuffs and collars tightly will keep wandering chiggers on the outside of your clothes. If you prefer not to wear long sleeves in the heat, mosquito repellant will also repel chiggers.
Itching usually peaks a day or two after a chigger bite occurs, but if you take a good scrub in a warm soapy bath as soon as you arrive home, you can wash off chiggers before they bite and remove any attached and feeding chiggers before you start to feel the itch.
There is no other creature that can cause more torment for its size than the chigger. But using these precautions, you can itch less this summer, and get more enjoyment from your outdoor activities.
For more information on summer activities in Missouri, go online to www.MissouriConservation.org.
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