Liothrips reuteri (Bagnall)

Minaei, Kambiz & Mound, Laurence, 2020, Thysanoptera host-plant associations, with an account of species living on Tamarix, and a new species of Lissothrips (Phlaeothripidae), Zootaxa 4868 (2), pp. 275-283 : 278

Liothrips reuteri (Bagnall)

Compsothrips reuteri Bagnall, 1913: 295 .

Liothrips jazykovi Moulton, 1946: 56 . Syn. n.

Described originally from Egypt, but with five synonymic names from Turkmenistan, Albania and Yemen (Thrips Wiki 2020), this species has also been recorded from the Canary Islands and India. Apparently a specific foliage feeder on Tamarix species, it has been reported from this plant in the southern and central parts of Iran by various authors ( Mortazawiha & Dern 1977; Barkhordari et al. 1981; Kheyrandish Koshkoei 2000). The macropterous form was described by Minaei and Mound (2014) as being apparently most common in spring. Moulton described L. jazykovi based on one female and one male from Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on Tamarix . He considered it comparable with L. reuteri although the latter “has a protruding vertex and a lighter colored antenna”. Considering the host and collecting locality of this species, also the variation in L. reuteri , these two are here considered to represent the same species. Specimens that are available in PPSU show variation in colour of antennal segments ( Figs 11–14 ). With over 260 species, the members of this leaf-feeding genus have been taken from a wide range of unrelated plants. However, as most species are known from very small samples, the level of host-specificity remains unclear.

Figures

FIGURES 11–14. Liothrips reuteri (female), variation in antenna.