Twospotted spider mite
Insect
Twospotted spider mite
Tetranychus urticae Koch
Acari: Tetranychidae
Distribution: Widespread and a major pest in most fruit-growing states and provinces in eastern North America.
Adult and nymphal mites are yellowish to pale green with a dorsal pair of apparent dark "spots" (actually internal tissue contents visible through their cuticle) (A). Males are smaller than females and have a pointed abdomen. The female takes on an orange tinge in the fall (referred to as the "carmine phase") (B). They live in small colonies and aggregate in the crevices of the bark or in the ground cover to overwinter. Eggs, spherical and translucent, are laid individually on the underside of leaves (C).