Insects problem with fiddle leaf

[ficus]

Hi there, I have been having an insect problem with my indoor fiddle leaf for couple of months now. I have been thoroughly cleaning the plant and each leaf couple of times already, getting rid of all visible bugs and spots, using insect spray and also treating the plant with neem oil. After about a week or two I am able to spot these bugs again so I need to repeat the process again. Initially I thought the plant was infested with spider mites but I am not entirely sure now since I am not seeing any webbing that is common in such case. Please help me identify this insect and I would appreciate any advice on how to cure my plant. It seems that there are could be either two insect types or just one in adult and nascent form. I am attaching 2 photos for reference. The small ones look like tiny black dots moving around the leaves or sometimes staying attached hard on the leaves which requires scrubbing to remove. The bigger ones seem more mobile and longer in shape. I run out of ideas so any help is greatly appreciated! Thank you!

 

[cpp gardener]

The bigger ones are thrips and are best controlled with a systemic insecticide. An alternative would be to spray the entire plant, including both sides of the leaves, with the Neem oil you've been using. I think the little black spots are probably droppings from the thrips. You also need to look for the source of the thrips, another plant inside or outside or possibly fresh cut flowers from the garden. Florist flowers almost never have insect problems (they spray them frequently at the growers) but I have introduced them from fresh cut garden flowers (even I have issues with bugs!).

 

[ficus]

Thanks for your reply, this is helpful! They do seem quite hard to completely eradicate. I think the little black spots are nascent form of these thrips, because I do see those moving around. And on a closer look they seem to have a tiny transparent torso. I will try again with thorough insecticide and spray regularly with neem oil.