Trying my hand at pumpkin patch this year and they’re doing pretty well. When I went out to check the flowers this week and try my hand at some manual pollinating, I noticed that most of the flowers had lots of the most tiny little bugs down in their centers crawling around. I almost didn’t recognize them as bugs they’re so tiny, basically microscopic. If they weren’t moving, I wouldn’t have noticed. After some googling, I thought I’d ask here what they might be and if I should do anything?
I don’t think they are aphids, they seem too small, and I didn’t notice any damage. Maybe they are?
They’re so small I couldn’t get a good photo.
I saw the same thing yesterday, tiny black spider looking things. I think they’re stink bug babies
Thrips? They like flowers and are small.
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Thrips are not spidery and are more likely in this instance than stinkbug nymphs that are not near-microscopic Thrips are several times longer that they are wide, at any stage whereas young stinkbugs are roundish.
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Hi all, thanks for your input. It’s really hard to get a good clear picture because they’re so tiny. This one is zoomed way in, and it’s hard to not get a blurry one with the wind blowing+zoom… but those little tiny specs are bugs running around. I think the bigger long flecks are larger more grown versions. This photo make them look much bigger than they are. They’re almost invisible they’re so small (except for the more mature ones, now.)
If you try to touch one of the bigger ones, does it spring away like it’s vanishing into thin air? They could be springtails if they are not thrips. Springtails sometimes eat pollen (they went nuts for my avocado pollen this spring), and are beneficial, or at least not pests. They mostly eat fungi and decaying stuff when they aren’t having pollen feasts.
Here’s the species of springtail I had on my flowers this spring, but others may look different:
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The Sundog image insects have the right length to width ration for both thrips and some springtails. Thrips are far more likely to be found on flowers, springtails do not eat plants.
I can’t remember ever growing pumpkins and not having those tiny little bugs in the fowers - every flower, all season long. I have no idea what they are, but they never damaged anything. In my mind, I always assumed that they were no see ums, just because they were the right size - barely visible, but they don’t harm the plant so I don’t think about them anymore.
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I second that. I always do a big pumpkin patch and those lil guys are always there. They seem pretty no harm no foul in my experience.
Those look like tiny beetles. The squash bugs I have damage leaves and the adults resemble stinkbug.
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Possibly Sap Beetles going after any moisture the flowers may produce.
One common kind has four colored patches on the wings.
Thanks all for your input. It sounds like they’re harmless so I’ll leave them be 