What Are Oak Itch Mite Symptoms?

The begin­ning of this sum­mer saw the much-antic­i­pat­ed and dread­ed ​“cica­da inva­sion,” an event where two dif­fer­ent types of cicadas — those that emerge every 13 years and those that emerge every 17 years — made their simul­ta­ne­ous appear­ance. While the buzz of cica­da wings and the sight of their emp­ty exoskele­tons has dimin­ished, the effects of this unique phe­nom­e­non are still being felt in Chica­go and its sur­round­ing suburbs.

The recent surge in oak itch mites is linked to this summer’s cica­da emer­gence. The unusu­al­ly con­sid­er­able num­ber of cicadas pro­vid­ed an abun­dant food source for midges, tiny flies com­mon­ly known as No-See-Ums, which, in turn, became prey for oak itch mites. 

As cica­da eggs hatched and their lar­vae bur­rowed into the ground, midges laid their eggs in the same areas, lead­ing to more lar­vae in the oak trees. Oak itch mites took advan­tage of this boun­ty, and as their num­bers grew, so did the like­li­hood of human encounters.

For many, the biggest sign of the oak itch mite inva­sion has been the itch­ing. The bites are typ­i­cal­ly clus­tered in areas where cloth­ing is loose, such as the neck, chest, or waist­band. Peo­ple have mis­tak­en the bites for bed­bugs or oth­er insect issues, but the key dif­fer­ence is that oak mite bites often appear after spend­ing time near oak trees, espe­cial­ly in parks or yards with heavy tree cover.

Com­mon Oak Itch Mite symp­toms include:

• Intense itch­ing: The bites cause red, raised welts that are incred­i­bly itchy and can take weeks to heal.
• Delayed reac­tions: Many peo­ple do not real­ize they’ve been bit­ten until hours or even days after the expo­sure, mak­ing it hard to pin­point the source.
• Clus­ters of bites: Bites often appear in groups, par­tic­u­lar­ly where skin is exposed or cloth­ing is looser.

One of the most frus­trat­ing things about oak itch mites is how dif­fi­cult they are to avoid. They are invis­i­ble to the naked eye and are car­ried by the wind, falling from trees onto any­one below. Unlike mos­qui­toes or ticks, you will not see them com­ing or feel the bite as it happens.

We rec­om­mend wear­ing tight­ly woven cloth­ing to avoid mites from sit­ting on the skin, and to take show­ers after you have returned from being out­side to reduce the chances of more bites.

If you have already been bit­ten, there are ways to man­age the Oak Itch Mite bites:

• Over-the-counter creams: Anti-itch creams con­tain­ing hydro­cor­ti­sone or anti­his­t­a­mines can pro­vide some relief. This will act as an anti-his­t­a­mine and help some of the irri­ta­tion subside.
• Cool com­press­es: Apply­ing a cold pack to the affect­ed area can reduce swelling and itching.
• Avoid scratch­ing: Though dif­fi­cult, scratch­ing can lead to infec­tions and make the itch­ing worse.

The good news is that this year’s oak itch mite surge is direct­ly tied to the cica­da emer­gence, which is a rare event. How­ev­er, it’s still pos­si­ble for small­er out­breaks to occur in future sum­mers. Keep­ing an eye on local tree health, mon­i­tor­ing pest cycles, and stay­ing informed can help res­i­dents min­i­mize their expo­sure in the com­ing years.

How­ev­er, if you have any ques­tions or con­cerns about rash­es, bites, or irri­ta­tion, reach out to a Duly Der­ma­tol­o­gist to address any skin relat­ed concerns.