Whitefly lookalike? (sorry no pics)

[Finepointcanon]

Hi guys, I apologize for not having pictures but my phone is on the fritz. I'll do my best to explain.

I have my vegging plants outdoors under a clear roof with lights. There are thousands of what I thought were whiteflies, but upon doing more research I don't think so. I don't see any damage from them, and the sizer and color are not quite right, but there are so many that they coat the entire plants at times.

They look like a whitefly, only about 2-3x bigger. About the size of a medium rice grain. They look like a very small orange/yellow colored moth without the fuzz. Same general shape as whiteflies. No eggs seen, no larvae either. So many that when I walk by it sounds like a flock of tiny birds taking off. Once the rain quits I'll try for some pics with my slr.

Anyone have experience with anything similar? Are they foes or neutral? I've been keeping an eye on everything and like I said, no damage, but it just seems like way too many bugs to be on the plants if they aren't getting something from it. We do have heavy flooding so maybe they are just taking refuge while the other plants are underwater.

Thanks for reading, this is Northern Thailand if it helps.

 

[Creeperpark]

Hi guys, I apologize for not having pictures but my phone is on the fritz. I'll do my best to explain.

I have my vegging plants outdoors under a clear roof with lights. There are thousands of what I thought were whiteflies, but upon doing more research I don't think so. I don't see any damage from them, and the sizer and color are not quite right, but there are so many that they coat the entire plants at times.

They look like a whitefly, only about 2-3x bigger. About the size of a medium rice grain. They look like a very small orange/yellow colored moth without the fuzz. Same general shape as whiteflies. No eggs seen, no larvae either. So many that when I walk by it sounds like a flock of tiny birds taking off. Once the rain quits I'll try for some pics with my slr.

Anyone have experience with anything similar? Are they foes or neutral? I've been keeping an eye on everything and like I said, no damage, but it just seems like way too many bugs to be on the plants if they aren't getting something from it. We do have heavy flooding so maybe they are just taking refuge while the other plants are underwater.

Thanks for reading, this is Northern Thailand if it helps.

Since you are in Northern Thailand it may be hard for anyone to know what you have for sure. You should ask one of the locals there if it's safe.

IF the environment is hot and dry, whiteflies multiply like crazy. When you grab a stem and shake it the adults will fly and look like a cloud around the plant. If that's the case, give all the plants a water spray shower and drench the soil for a week or two. Whiteflies hate water and cool temperatures. Keep us posted.

 

[Porky82]

If no damage after they have been around for a while they may just be using the plants to rest or shelter maybe?

 

[Finepointcanon]

Since you are in Northern Thailand it may be hard for anyone to know what you have for sure. You should ask one of the locals there if it's safe.

IF the environment is hot and dry, whiteflies multiply like crazy. When you grab a stem and shake it the adults will fly and look like a cloud around the plant. If that's the case, give all the plants a water spray shower and drench the soil for a week or two. Whiteflies hate water and cool temperatures. Keep us posted.

Thanks, yeah that's probably my best bet. As far as the cloud surrounding the plant, they do that but they are more cream colored and... I wish I could post a pic. Not white anyways and the wings form like a crest, not flat where they lie against the body. Like the size of one long grain of rice. Actually the environment is hot and very very very wet, we are recovering from severe flooding which left my house an island in the middle of the river which is normally 300m away. They might have just been seking refuge on anything green and dry.

Thanks for your input creeper.

 

[Finepointcanon]

If no damage after they have been around for a while they may just be using the plants to rest or shelter maybe?

That could be, if I saw eggs or larvae or any damage I could at least be sure that they are doing something to the plants, but so far nada. There are some aphids but I know what that damage looks like and the local predators keep them from doing much more than aesthetic damage.

We just had severe flooding which surrounded entirely my house so they might just be seeking refuge. I'll haul out the slr eventually and post pics for anyone reading this who has had similar bug friends.