Soybean Insects
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Best Management Practices for Soybean Production
This is your unbiased, research-based guide to soybean production to help increase yield, reduce input costs and protect your investment.
All Soybean Insects Content
Grasshopper Populations Continue to Cause Issues in South Dakota
Recent reports of crop loss along field edges indicate that grasshopper populations in some areas of South Dakota are well above threshold. Unfortunately, crops are often the target of these moving populations.
Soybean Aphids Exceeding Thresholds in Some Parts of South Dakota
There have been a few fields this week that were infested with soybean aphids that are getting closer to threshold. We have also received reports of insecticides being applied to manage soybean aphids in South Dakota.
Redheaded Flea Beetles in Soybean
While scouting soybean this week, we noticed an uptick in redheaded flea beetle activity. In the fields that we scouted, defoliation levels were still very low at less than 5%.
Bean Leaf Beetles Showing Up in Soybean
Despite the prediction of low overwintering survival we have observed bean leaf beetles in soybean this week. See our latest observations and management recommendations.
Update on Chlorpyrifos Use in South Dakota
As of June 30, 2025, the labeled uses for chlorpyrifos products for food and feed are limited to alfalfa, soybean, and wheat in South Dakota. Chlorpyrifos can no longer be used to treat sunflowers.
Soybean Aphids Detected in South Dakota
While scouting soybean aphids this week we observed small colonies of 5 to 10 soybean aphid nymphs. This indicates that the soybean aphids are just starting to arrive in South Dakota soybeans and weekly scouting for them should be occurring.
Green Caterpillars Causing Defoliation in Soybean
This week we observed several species of caterpillars in soybean fields. The most common species were the green cloverworm and the cabbage looper.
Dectes Stem Borer in South Dakota Soybeans
Fact sheet on Dectes stem borer in South Dakota soybeans
Survey of Grasshoppers in South Dakota
Fact sheet on the abundance and species diversity of grasshoppers in South Dakota
Dectes Stem Borer in Soybean Survey: 2023 and 2024 Results
During the 2023 and 2024 growing seasons, researchers at SDSU surveyed soybean in Eastern South Dakota for the presence of Dectes stem borer adults.