The protelean parasite Allothrombium pulvinum Ewing is parasitic only in its larval stage. It is a bisexual species, and larvae disperse via their hosts. Larval parasites prefer previously parasitized hosts to unparasitized ones, which leads to superparasitism of the host. I hypothesize that superparasitism in these and related mites is an adaptation to increase the chance of finding a mate in new areas following dispersal in the larval stage