Keys to the families and genera of blood and tissue feeding mites associated with Albertan birds.

There are at least 3,000 species of mites (Arachnida: Acari) living in close association with birds (Aves). The influence of mites on host survival and reproduction ranges from severely detrimental to mildly beneficial. Four orders of mites include species that are blood or tissue feeders on birds. While surveying mites from birds in Alberta, we became aware of the need for an inclusive illustrated key to identify the families and genera of blood and tissue feeding mites. We collected mites by washing birds and examining the filtrate. In total, 328 individual birds representing 123 species were examined. We used a camera-mounted compound microscope, Adobe Photoshop, and a drawing tablet to acquire and edit images. The resulting key covers 13 families and 14 genera of parasitic mites. It was created with non-acarologists in mind and can be easily used by anyone interested in identifying bird-associated mites.

至少有3000种螨类（蛛形纲：蜱螨亚纲）与鸟类（鸟纲）密切相关。螨类对宿主生存和繁殖的影响从严重有害到轻度有益不等。四个目（的螨类）包含以鸟类血液或组织为食的种类。在对阿尔伯塔省的鸟类身上的螨类进行调查时，我们意识到需要一个内容全面且有插图的检索表来识别吸食血液和组织的螨类的科和属。我们通过清洗鸟类并检查滤液来收集螨类。总共检查了代表123个物种的328只个体鸟类。我们使用了装有相机的复式显微镜、Adobe Photoshop和绘图板来获取和编辑图像。由此产生的检索表涵盖了13个科和14个属的寄生螨类。它是考虑到非螨类学家而创建的，任何有兴趣识别与鸟类相关的螨类的人都可以轻松使用。