# What are those teeny insects in flowers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 2, 2004, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-teeny-insects-in-flowers/237934 "2004-04-02T18:45:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-teeny-insects-in-flowers/237934/1 "2004-04-02T18:45:48Z")
I live in California, and ever since I’ve been working in gardens or have picked and brought flowers inside, I see these teeny tiny little bugs in flowers. They are sliver-shaped, brownish to greenish in color, and if they get on you, they can itch and sting slightly (as though they were trying to bite you in lieu of a plant). They can be extremely numerous in flowers, to the point where if you bring in a big bouquet you’ll regret it because you’ll keep finding the bugs on yourself for a couple of days. They’re about 1/4 the size of a flea, and no, they’re not aphids. Does anyone have a clue? ---
**Author:** ![daffyduck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ec9cab/32.png) [@daffyduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/daffyduck)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-teeny-insects-in-flowers/237934/2 "2004-04-02T19:21:53Z")
I don’t know what they are, but I’ll bet if you take them to your nearest garden center, they will be able to tell you want they are and how to deal with them. They should be familiar with all local pests. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-teeny-insects-in-flowers/237934/3 "2004-04-02T19:29:27Z")
> [@pugluvr](#): > > I live in California, and ever since I’ve been working in gardens or have picked and brought flowers inside, I see these teeny tiny little bugs in flowers. They are sliver-shaped, brownish to greenish in color, and if they get on you, they can itch and sting slightly (as though they were trying to bite you in lieu of a plant). They can be extremely numerous in flowers, to the point where if you bring in a big bouquet you’ll regret it because you’ll keep finding the bugs on yourself for a couple of days. > > They’re about 1/4 the size of a flea, and no, they’re not aphids. Does anyone have a clue? Thrips ( Thysanoptera ), quite possibly. I might even venture to say _probably_. However **daffyduck’s** advice is good - a nursery should be able to identify them. Nobody here will be able to make an I.D. with any certainty without pictures ( _good_ pictures ). - Tamerlane ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-teeny-insects-in-flowers/237934/4 "2004-04-02T20:19:07Z")
Your local county Extension office should also be able to help. And won’t try to sell you something to kill the “pest” you’ve found on your flowers. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2004, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-those-teeny-insects-in-flowers/237934/5 "2004-04-02T20:29:38Z")
Thrips, eh? ::Googling furiously:: Yep, those are the little [bastards](http://www.ento.vt.edu/Fruitfiles/StrwThrips.html). Western Flower Thrips, to be precise. Thanks, **Tamerlane**. They’re not so much a garden pest as just a curiosity. That is, they’re not too pesty unless they’re on _me_, nipping and stinging. A friend here at the office brought be a gorgeous big bouquet of lilacs today, and I put them in a vase on my desk. Within minutes, I was itching on my arms and looked down to see the little pissers. I moved the vase to a distant ledge and spent an hour hunting Thrips on my desk and squishing them with a kleenex. That was hours ago, and I’m still finding one occasionally - though finding them requires powerful reading glasses.