Haplothrips avius, Mound & Minaei, 2007

Mound, Laurence A. & Minaei, Kambiz, 2007, Australian thrips of the Haplothrips lineage (Insecta: Thysanoptera), Journal of Natural History 41 (45 - 48), pp. 2919-2978 : 2946-2947

Haplothrips avius sp. nov.

Female macroptera. Body colour brown, all tarsi and apices of tibiae yellow, antennal segment III yellow, major setae pale, fore wing shaded medially and at base. Head slightly longer than wide, maxillary stylets one-third of head width apart, retracted anterior to postocular setae, maxillary bridge complete medially ( Figure 14 ); postocular setae capitate, extending just beyond posterior margin of compound eyes. Antennal segment III with two sensoria, IV with four sensoria; segment VIII relatively elongate (Figure 19). Pronotum with five pairs of capitate setae. Mesonotal lateral setae capitate. Metanotal median setae arise on anterior half of sclerite, with no small discal setae on anterior half. Mesopresternum transverse but slender medially. Fore tarsal tooth very small, represented by slight recurving of inner apex of tarsus. Fore wing with no duplicated cilia, sub-basal setae capitate. Tergites II–III with no discal setae lateral to wing-retaining setae; posteromarginal setae S1 broadly capitate on tergites II–VII, capitate on VIII; tergite IX setae S1 and S2 capitate.

Measurements of holotype female (in M m). Body length 1720. Head, length 175; median width 140; postocular setae 26. Pronotum, length 110; width 230; major setae am 28, aa 22, ml 22, epim 46, pa 38. Fore wing length 700; sub-basal setae 36, 36, 38. Tergite IX setae S1 75, S2 70, S3 75. Tube length 110; basal width 50; anal setae 155. Antennal segments III–VIII length 42, 44, 46, 38, 34, 28.

Material examined

Holotype ♀ macroptera: South Australia, Cox Scrub , 50 km SE of Adelaide, beaten from low herbs, 14 January 2002 (LAM 4099) . Paratypes: 1♀ taken with holotype; 20 km E of Meningie , 1♀ from Lycium ferossissimum , 9 February 2003; Kangaroo Island , 1♀ beaten from Acacia paradoxa , 25 December 2002. Queensland, 40 Mile Scrub , 1♀ beaten from foliage, 3 July 1995.

Comments

Despite being collected at sites more than 2000 km apart no significant differences can be seen between the specimens from South Australia and the one from northern Queensland. This is a much smaller species than H. driesseni described below, with the maxillary stylets further apart, but it is probably yet another species that is associated with the inflorescences of particular Cyperaceae . Despite the lack of fore wing duplicated cilia, neither of these species is closely similar in other character states to the typical members of subgenus Trybomiella , such as H. robustus or even H. timori .

Figures

Figures 1–15. (1) Bagnalliella nigricoxae, holotype. (2) Dyothrips pallescens, pronotum. (3) Dolichothrips reuteri, mouth cone. (4) Androthrips monsterae, fore femora. (5) Priesneria peronis, antenna. (6) Karnyothrips melaleucus, head, pronotum, and fore legs. (7) Euoplothrips bagnalli, fore legs of small and large males. (8) Mesothrips jordani, head. (9) Haplothrips acaciae, head and pronotum. (10) H. anceps, head, pronotum, and right fore leg. (11) H. acaciae, pelta. (12) H. anceps pelta. (13) H. angusi pelta. (14) H. avius, head. (15) H. angusi, prosternites.