First Soybean Aphid for 2009 Collected

The first soybean aphid (presumed) for the 2009 season in Kentucky has been collected. A singe juvenile aphid was found on a leaflet from our “100 leaf” sample from the Henderson Co. sentinel site. Not much of a find perhaps, but it does let us know that the Soybean aphid is in Kentucky. The aphid is presumed to be a soybean aphid because only a single very young juvenile was collected and these cannot be identified with complete surety . The aphid has been isolate on a soybean plant in the lab. If it forms a colony or lives to an age that can be identified then, we will know for sure the correct identification. But given the location of the collection and the look of the aphid it is very likely soybean aphid. At this time there are still no reports of soybean aphid in Kentucky suction traps, in whole plant samples from sentinel plots, nor reports from consultants or producers. It is still early in the season for Kentucky. We have many early stage beans that will continue to grow right up until frost. Continue to scout regularly for this and other soybean pests. Posted by Cory Walters for Doug Johnson.