They have a slender body and three pairs of legs.
Thrips vary in color from dark brown to yellowish.
They are active insects and move about rapidly when disturbed. Adult and immature individuals are found together on the plant and there are several generations per year. Thrips rasp the leaf surface with special mouthparts and then suck up the plant juices. Such feeding causes the surface of the leaf to become whitened or silvery and somewhat flecked or stippled in appearance. The damage caused by thrips is largely aesthetic.