Figure 1. Two-spotted spider mites (red arrows) and eggs (blue arrows) on a soybean leaf. Note the 'stippling' injury symptoms on the leaf which result when a spider mite sucks the green contents out of individual cells when feeding. Stippled cells will no longer contribute to the plant's growth and development. Photo: Angie Peltier, UMN Extension Spider mites Two-spotted spider mites ( Figure 1 ) are currently being observed in some northwest Minnesota soybean fields that missed some of this summer's rains and are suffering from water stress. This is because the vegetation on field edges on which the spider mites begin the growing season feeding, decreases in quality as the summer progressed and dry conditions set up. Initial spider mite infestations in soybean fields begin on field edges.
