Hoplandrothrips howei, Mound, Laurence A. & Tree, Desley J., 2013

Mound, Laurence A. & Tree, Desley J., 2013, Fungus-feeding thrips from Australia in the worldwide genus Hoplandrothrips (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripinae), Zootaxa 3700 (3), pp. 476-494 : 487

Hoplandrothrips howei sp.n.

( Fig. 12 )

Male macroptera. Body and femora brown with red internal pigment; fore tibiae yellow, mid and hind tibiae brown with extreme apex yellow; all tarsi yellow; antennal segment III yellow with weak shading in apical third, IV–V yellow at base; fore wing faintly shaded medially.

Head longer than wide, slightly wider behind large eyes then narrowing to basal constriction ( Fig. 12 ); dorsal surface reticulate; cheeks with several pairs of setae including one stout pair in basal third; postocular setae slightly lateral to inner margins of eyes, about as long as eye width; maxillary stylets retracted anterior to postocular setae, close together medially; mouth cone pointed, extending across prosternum. Antennal segment III with 3 sensoria, IV with 4 sensoria; VII clearly pedicellate, VIII slightly narrowed to base.

Pronotum with no sculpture, with stout median longitudinal apodeme; am and pa setae no longer than discal setae, aa, ml and epim setae long and capitate, aa setae almost as long as basal width of head. Fore femora stout, without tubercles, fore tarsal tooth stout. Basantra absent, chitinous islets large; mesopresternum broadly boatshaped, mesoeusternal anterior margin slightly narrowed, sternopleural sutures well-developed. Mesonotal lateral, and metanotal median setae short and capitate. Metanotum weakly reticulate at anterior with 2 or more small discal setae; sublaterally with weak pair of longitudinal ridges. Fore wing very weakly constricted medially; sub-basal setae all capitate, S3 longer than S1 and S2; 12 duplicated cilia.

Pelta elongate bell-shaped, broadly flared at base; tergites II–VII with anterior wing retaining setae slightly weaker than posterior pair; one pair of small setae near campaniform sensilla medially; lateral setae S1 on II–VI with apex smoothly spoon-shaped, III–VI with S2 similar; tergite IX S1 weakly capitate, S2 blunt; sternites III–VII with paired areas of specialised reticulation anterolateral to discal setae, VIII with broad transverse pore plate.

Measurements (holotype male in microns). Body length 2500. Head, length 275; width 200; po setae 80. Pronotal setae length: am 10, aa 100, ml 85, epim 85, pa 15. Fore wing length 1000. Tergite IX setae S1 100; S2 45; S3 150. Antennal segments III–VIII length 85, 85, 75, 65, 50, 35.

Female macroptera. Similar to male in colour and general appearance, major setae dusky; head less constricted to base with weaker cheek setae; pronotum weakly sculptured near anterior and posterior margins, all 5 pairs of major setae capitate with fringed apices. Mesopresternum transverse. Setae S1 on tergites II–VI with apices strongly asymmetric and fringed, S2 setae shorter but similar; S1 and S2 on VIII–IX weakly capitate, intermediate setae on IX not elongate.

Specimens examined. Holotype male, New South Wales, Lord Howe Island, Lagoon Beach, from dead branches, 24.xi.1996 (LAM 3062).

Paratype female, collected with holotype.

Comments. Despite collecting efforts over several years on Lord Howe Island, this species remains known only from two specimens. It is closely similar to xanthocnemis in many character states, differing most obviously in the dark tibiae, but also in the reduced pronotal am and pa setae of the male. The female paratype was taken together with the male holotype, and these two are similar in the colour and form of the antennae, and the metanotal chaetotaxy. The female has the head more elongate than the male, with weak cheek setae, the pronotal am and pa setae well developed, and the major setae on the pronotum and tergites dusky with their apices strongly asymmetric and fringed. Similar differences between sexes in the tergal setae are known in xanthocnemis , and differences in pronotal chaetotaxy between sexes are common in Hoplandrothrips species. In colour, howei resembles the description of leai , but the head is considerably more elongate than indicated in the original illustration of that species.

Figures

FIGURES 9 – 14. Hoplandrothrips from Australia. Head & pronotum 9 – 12: (9) coorongi sp. n.; (10) fuscus; (11) gloriosi sp. n.; (12) howei sp. n. Meso & metanotum, pelta & tergite II, 13 – 14: (13) flavipes; (14) gloriosi sp. n.