What is the lifecycle of thrips?
Female thrips, which are larger than the males, can reproduce without male fertilization. The females make slits in the leaf tissue to lay their eggs—25 to 50 eggs at a time—which hatch in one to two weeks. Hatching babies (nymphs) look a lot like the adults, except they are a translucent light-yellow color, and have no wings. They have short antennae and short legs. These immature thrips are very active, feeding heartily on the plants and growing quickly through a series of metamorphic molts. It is during the early nymph stages that most of the plant damage occurs. Soon after reaching full size, the nymphs pupate by forming cocoons, either on the plant or in the ground. After several days, winged adults emerge from the cocoons to begin the cycle again. A full generation may repeat every two to three weeks, but populations will be largest from late spring to midsummer. Thrips can survive the winter in the egg stage, which is why removing plant debris is important for thrip control.