Breathe lightly on your plant and watch closely for movement of the pest reacting to your carbon dioxide. There are some of the major identifying characteristics of the major groups of soft-bodied pests you might encounter on houseplants or in the greenhouse. Almost invisibly small, mites look like moving little dots of red, yellow or green. In the colder months mites often turn orange. Look for spider-like webbing and plant parts that have bronzing color, yellow stippling of leaves or a dirty appearance.
Adults have two pairs of feather-like wings that fold flat over their backs when they rest.
The larvae, or young are typically yellow-orange. The adults are tan to brown-black. Thrips leave black specks of their feces, scattered like a sprinkling of pepper on leaf surfaces, and are attracted to bright blue color. Mealybugs look like little fluffs of greasy or waxy white cotton that are oval, somewhat raised and distinctly segmented with a serrated body margin. They snuggle near crevices between stems and leaves and on the underside of leaves.