What are those teeny tiny red spiders called?
They are called Red Velvet Mites, Spider mites are different. Spider mites are a problem for house plants but they are not red. The presence of red velvet mites is extremely important to the environment. These mites are part of a community of soil arthropods that is critical in terms of rates of decomposition in woodlands and in maintaining the structure of the entire ecosystem. By feeding on insects that eat fungi and bacteria, they stimulate the decomposition process.
