Priesneria peronis, 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 : 2974-2975

Priesneria peronis sp. nov.

Female aptera. Body, antennae, and legs light brown, mid and hind tarsi yellow with apices of these tibiae variably yellow. Head longer than wide, without ocelli; maxillary stylets retracted to postocular setae and about one-third of head width apart, maxillary bridge complete. Antennae with segment VIII closely joined to VII; segment III with one sensorium, IV with two sensoria; segment III with distinctive sub-basal swelling ( Figure 5 ). Pronotum with four pairs of major, acute, setae, am setae not much larger than discal setae. Fore tarsus with very small tooth at inner apex. Metanotum with no sculpture medially. Mesopresternum fully eroded medially; metathoracic sternopleural sutures long. Pelta with rounded margins; wing-retaining setae short and straight, major setae all acute except S2 on tergite VIII.

Measurements of holotype female (in M m). Body length 1850. Head, length 190; median width 140; postocular setae 44. Pronotum, length 122; width 232; major setae am 12, aa 24, ml 24, epim 42, pa 30. Tergite IX setae S1 76, S2 80, S3 118. Tube length 106; basal width 56; anal setae 166. Antennal segments III–VIII length 44, 48, 44, 38, 42, 24.

Male microptera. Similar to female but smaller. Tergite IX setae S2 short and stout; pseudovirga slender with pointed apex.

Material examined

Holotype ♀ microptera: Australian Capital Territory, Black Mtn , from Eucalyptus dead branch, 23 April 2004 (LAM 4416) . Paratypes: 1♀, 1 „ from dead twigs at type locality, 18 October 2005, 1 „ ditto, 13 April 2006 , 4♀, 2 „ ditto, 2 October 2006; Australian Capital Territory, Namadji, 1♀, 1 „ from dead twigs, 16 July 2005 .

Comments

When alive on the collecting tray, the adults of this species exhibited a curious worm-like motion. The fact that they have been collected from dead branches, one specimen at a time, might indicate that the species is predatory rather than fungivorous. This new species is essentially similar to the type species of the genus, and both species have been taken from the same locality at Canberra. Two specimens of this genus mentioned by Pitkin (1973) from near Biloela, Queensland, possibly represent a further species. These have the postocular setae finely acute but the epimeral and lateral abdominal setae capitate .

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.