This is an article from the Press of Atlantic City, about a young woman who had birds nesting on her air conditioning unit:

Chickadees nested in a protected area adjacent to her air conditioner outside the window of her Brigantine apartment. It was pretty cool getting a close-up view of chickadees raising their brood.

But when the fledglings took flight and the chickadees abandoned the nest, the bird mites that thrived by biting the birds suddenly went looking for a new blood meal.

The nearest animal was the young woman.

The mites had no problem crawling through the tiniest cracks around the window casing, since including legs and head they’re no bigger than the period at the end of this sentence, and their bodies are smaller still.

Bird mites are not very common, but when they do appear, this is a likely reason why.

The solution is to identify the problem (you can use tape to pick up bird mite samples on a window ledge, for example).  And then get a pest management professional to treat it.

Does your family have pet gerbils? If so, they are a possible source of your itchy skin condition, according to this 2001 article in the Archives of Dermatology.

Avian Mite Bites Acquired From a New Source—Pet Gerbils

Report of 2 Cases and Review of the Literature

Anne W. Lucky, MD; C. Paul Sayers, MD; J. David Argus, DVM; Andrea Lucky, BA

Arch Dermatol. 2001;137:167-170.

ABSTRACT

Background Cutaneous manifestations of avian mite bites are not well recognized by physicians or patients. Clinical signs and symptoms are usually caused by bites from avian mites that have infested domestic poultry or birds nesting in or near human habitation. This report details 2 cases of pruritic papules acquired from avian mites that had infested pet gerbils and reviews the dermatologic literature about avian mites.

Observations An 11-year-old boy and an unrelated 10-year-old girl each had mysterious, pruritic papules for many months before their pet gerbils were found to be infested with Ornithonyssus sylviarum (the northern fowl mite) and Dermanyssus gallinae (the chicken mite), respectively. Symptoms resolved when the gerbils were removed from the home.

Conclusions Because infestation of pet gerbils with avian mites has never been reported, cases of avian mite bites and dermatitis may have gone unrecognized or misdiagnosed. Inquiry about ownership of pet gerbils may be helpful in patients with mysterious bites.

You can read the whole article here at the Archives of Dermatology.

Remember, if you think something’s biting you, go and see a doctor and rule out scabies, body lice, and other conditions the doctor can treat. If you may have bird mites, rat mites, or another infestation, seek the advice of a good pest management professional. You cannot get rid of this on your own.