Plant Health Initiative

Soybean aphid distribution

Check the USDA-PIPE maps regularly during the growing season.

Since the initial identification of the soybean aphid in Wisconsin, Illinois, and the Great Lakes area in 2000, the soybean aphid has spread into more than 20 states and 3 Canadian provinces. 

Population levels of the soybean aphid in each state are monitored during the growing season and the results posted on the USDA Pest Information Platform for Extension and Education (PIPE) website – check the drop-down menu in the upper right corner of the PIPE home page. State extension specialists regularly post local conditions and recommendations - click on your state to view.

Soybean Aphid Suction Trap Network

The suction trap network began in Illinois, and has since expanded to ten states in the North Central region. The traps are basically big tubes roughly 25 feet tall – high enough to catch winged, migrating aphids. At the base of each tube is a jar filled with preserving fluid. Fans suck aphids into the tube, and aphids are preserved in the jar. Every week, researchers replace the jars and count the number of soybean aphids. Results are reported on the Regional Soybean Aphid Suction Trap Network, allowing entomologists to track soybean aphids.

Suction traps are a means to track aphid overwintering flights. Fall flight activity may indicate the size of the overwintering, and following-season, soybean aphid population. Trap captures can be viewed at the Regional Soybean Aphid Suction Trap Network

Researchers are also using the regional, multi-year data to assess the long-term value of suction traps as a predictive tool. The project is funded by the North Central Soybean Research Program and several state soybean associations.

In 2009, there were 42 suction traps operating in 10 Midwestern states. In addition to identifying all the aphids of agricultural interest, people in Dr. David Voegtlin’s lab in Illinois also identify native aphids that are encountered.