Scrub typhus is a form of typhus cause by Orientia tsutsugamushi and transmitted by chiggers, which are found in areas of heavy scrub vegetation. This variety of typhus was known in Japan as tsutsugamushi disease, hence the formal name, and was also prevalent in Malaysia and Australia. According to J. R. Audy, severe epidemics of the disease occurred among troops in what was then known as Burma and Ceylon during the World War II. Contact with species related to the chigger mite, found in many parts of the world, can also cause an intense irritation of the human skin.