Can Jackson Cameleons have mites?

Question
Hi,
My neighbor (who lives above us) has a cage of Jackson Chameleons which is directly above one of our windows. It seems as if we have a mite problem in our unit and wanted to know if the source could be the Jackson Chameleon. If so, could the mites that are carried by Jackson Chameleons bite us? We're having a difficult time finding a source (there are no bird nests or rodent problems that we know about) and was wondering if the Jackson Chameleon could be it.

Answer
Hi Mary, There is a possibility. The lizard mite is species-specific but chameleons can also be infested with trombiculid mites. The adults of this species don't bite but the larval stage, known as the chigger, does. They affect humans as well, if you are in the southern U.S you may already be quite aware of them. I've included a link on the trombiculid mite also known as the harvest mite, you can also do a search on chiggers for more info.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvest_mite