Dactuliothrips xerophilus Bailey, 1937: 122

Body dark brown, fore tibia and tarsi pale. Antenna dark, segment III and base or basal three fourths of segment IV pale (Fig. 18). Fore wings dark with a pale area near the base (Fig. 80). Head wider than long, with two pairs of long postocular setae (Fig. 28). Pronotum and mesonotum with microtrichia (Figs 36, 43). Metanotum reticulate arcuate, with microtrichia, and with one pair of anterior setae (Fig. 43). Fore femur with 1–4 small spurs on inner margin (Fig. 71). Abdominal sternites IV–VI with 5–6 median discal setae, and microtrichia; sternite VII with three pairs of posteromarginal setae and two pairs of smaller supernumerary setae aligned with the posteromarginal setae (Fig. 54). Male abdominal tergite I with paired longitudinal ridges that do not reach the anterior margin.

Material examined. USA, California, Mojave Desert, 1 male paratype, on Joshua tree flowers, 23.iii.1937 (R. Bohart); Victorville, 1 female, on Joshua tree flowers, 13.iv.1937 (M. Bacher); Little Rock, 1 female, on Joshua tree flowers, 23.iii.1937 (R. Bohart); Le Bec, 1 female, on Joshua tree flowers, 12.iii.1941 (L.G. Jones); Joshua tree NP, 1 female, 23.ii.2003 (I. Terry).

Acknowledgements

We thank Claudia Szumik and Matt Kaneshiro for advice and comments on the manuscript, José Ambrosetti for the identification of the host plants, and Laurence Mound for D. ephedra sp.n. material and comments on the manuscript. This research was supported by a grant from Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de Argentina (CONICET, grant PIP No. 6502). We also thank the Smithsonian Institution for the short term visitor grant to V.P. to study the Thysanoptera collection at USNMNH in Washington DC and Dr. Richard zur Strassen and SMF for facilitating access to material and work space to study the SMF Thysanoptera collection. We also thank David Nickle (USNMNH) and Marta Loiacono (MLP) for the material to develop this study, as well as Liliana Cichón (EEA Alto Valle, INTA), Jaime Ortego (EEA, Mendoza, INTA) and Maria Elena Arce for collecting D. kaszabi specimens.