We have now documented brown marmorated stink bugs in soybean fields in at least 15 counties in Virginia. My guess is that if we had more time to look, we would find them in most of the others. The numbers are still low, 1 to 4/15 sweeps, and fields are in senescence, so there is no economic threat. Prior to this year, we had not found them in soybean fields. The bigger question in my mind has to do with next season. Is this low number going to increase significantly next year? I think the probability is high given the incredibly huge populations that are aggregating on and in homes and structures, trees and shrubs over most of the northern, western, and central parts of the state. Will these huge overwintering populations move into gardens and crops next spring? Based what has been reported from other areas, it appears that the answer is ‘yes’. One area of the state that has escaped these large overwintering aggregations is the coastal plain. Although we have found a few in crops and in black light traps, I have not seen or gotten complaint calls about large aggregations from homeowners from this region of the state. If the numbers do build in this area, will cotton become the next victim? Other native stink bugs species are highly attracted to cotton bolls and are capable of doing extensive damage. Will brown marmorated stink bugs join this complex? Time will tell and we will be monitoring closely next season.