diff --git a/tractor/_testing/_reap.py b/tractor/_testing/_reap.py
index 875ad899..71857f52 100644
--- a/tractor/_testing/_reap.py
+++ b/tractor/_testing/_reap.py
@@ -291,13 +291,15 @@ def find_runaway_subactors(
 
 
 def find_orphans(
-    repo_root: pathlib.Path,
+    repo_root: pathlib.Path|None = None,
 ) -> list[int]:
     '''
     PIDs that are:
 
     - reparented to init (`PPid == 1`),
-    - have `cwd == <repo_root>`,
+    - have `cwd == <repo_root>` (defaults to the calling
+      proc's cwd, i.e. the repo root under a normal
+      `pytest` invocation),
     - and have a `python` in their cmdline.
 
     This is the "pytest-died-mid-session" case where the
@@ -306,7 +308,7 @@ def find_orphans(
     init-children on the box.
 
     '''
-    repo: str = str(repo_root)
+    repo: str = str(repo_root or pathlib.Path.cwd())
     hits: list[int] = []
     for pid in _iter_live_pids():
         if _read_status_ppid(pid) != 1:
@@ -1017,6 +1019,19 @@ def reap_subactors_per_test() -> int:
     (`_reap_orphaned_subactors`) only kicks in at session
     end which is too late to save the cascade.
 
+    Reaps both:
+      1. direct descendants of `pytest` (`PPid==pytest_pid`)
+      2. NEW init-adopted tractor procs (`PPid==1` AND
+         `_is_tractor_subactor`) that appeared between
+         pre-yield and post-yield — these are the leaked
+         subactors whose mid-tier parent died during the
+         cascade, reparenting them to init.
+
+    Pre-yield snapshot of init-adopted tractor procs is
+    used to scope (2) to THIS test's leaks only — without
+    it we'd also reap orphans from concurrent unrelated
+    tractor uses on the box (piker, etc.).
+
     Apply at module-level on the topically-problematic
     test files via:
 
@@ -1036,7 +1051,16 @@ def reap_subactors_per_test() -> int:
 
     '''
     parent_pid: int = os.getpid()
+    # Snapshot pre-existing init-adopted tractor procs so
+    # we can scope post-test reap to NEW orphans only.
+    pre_orphans: set[int] = set(find_orphans())
     yield parent_pid
     pids: list[int] = find_descendants(parent_pid)
+    new_orphans: list[int] = [
+        pid for pid in find_orphans()
+        if pid not in pre_orphans
+    ]
+    if new_orphans:
+        pids.extend(new_orphans)
     if pids:
         reap(pids, grace=3.0)