Thrips subnudula (Karny)

Mound, Laurence A. & Masumoto, Masami, 2005, The genus Thrips (Thysanoptera, Thripidae) in Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand, Zootaxa 1020 (1), pp. 1-64 : 50

Thrips subnudula (Karny)

Ramaswamiahiella subnudula Karny, 1926: 208

Diagnosis: Body and legs yellow, distal antennal segments light brown; forewings pale. Head wider than long (Fig. 89), ocellar setae pair III small and arising within ocellar triangle behind fore ocellus; postocular setae I about as long as ocellar setae III. Antennae 7­ segmented, III & IV with short forked sense cone. Pronotum with numerous small discal setae and 2 pairs of short postero­angular setae (Fig. 89); posterior margin with 4 or 5 pairs of setae. Metanotum (Fig. 90) with irregular longitudinal reticulation medially but longitudinally striate laterally; median setae small, arising well behind anterior margin, campaniform sensilla present and close together. Forewing first vein with 3 setae on distal half, second vein with row of about 18 setae; clavus with 5 setae on marginal vein. Tergite II with 3 lateral marginal setae; median tergites with lines of sculpture extending to campaniform sensilla (Fig. 92); tergite VIII posterior margin with comb broadly interrupted medially but with a few small microtrichia laterally; pleurotergites with 4 to 8 discal setae, also rows of ciliate microtrichia. Sternite II with 8 marginal setae, III–VI with about 12 marginal setae (Fig. 91), VII with 3 pairs of marginal setae the median pair arising at the margin; sternite II with about 6 discal setae, III–VI with up to 18 discal setae, VII with about 20 discal setae in a double row.

Male smaller than female; tergite VIII without marginal comb of microtrichia; tergite IX S1 & S2 setae arising on a transverse straight line; sternites III–V with narrow transverse glandular area.

Breeding: No host has been recorded for this species in Australia, but in India it has been found breeding on the leaves of Parthenium hysterophorus .

Distribution: Widespread in India and Pakistan, and recorded from Nigeria ( Bhatti, 1990), a single female of this species has been seen from near Brisbane, Queensland.

Relationships: The duplication of the sternal posteromarginal setae has led some authors to place this species in a separate genus, Ramaswamiahiella . However, similar duplication occurs in both T. aspinus and T. unispinus , although the latter lacks discal setae on the pleurotergites.