Impeding movement of the poultry red mite, Dermanyssus gallinae

•Dermanyssus gallinae is an economically important haematophagous ectoparasite of laying hens.•Impeding mite movement could potentially prevent D. gallinae infestations or prevent mites feeding on birds.•Thyme oil, sticky tape and insecticidal glue barriers contained 78-88% of mites within a specific area in in vitro experiments.•Trials in an in vivo setting are needed to confirm the commercial applicability of these barriers.

The poultry red mite, Dermanyssus gallinae, is an economically important hematophagous parasite of commercial egg laying hens, also affecting domesticated birds and companion animals. Conventional control of D. gallinae through acaricidal spraying is often ineffective, creating an urgent need to identify alternative management strategies for commercial and domestic infestations. Whilst integrated pest management is being considered for D. gallinae, the potential of impeding mite 'migration' routes, to either prevent initial infestation or manage established populations, has not been researched. Here we demonstrate that barriers of insecticidal glue, double sided sticky tape and thyme oil can contain D. gallinae within a specified area of a petri dish (78-88% of total mite population) and this level of containment was significantly greater than for negative controls (p values <0.05). Further studies in poultry houses are recommended to investigate the efficacy of these barriers in real world application and identity potential for barriers as a strategy for mite control.