Thrips aspinus, Mound & Masumoto, 2005

Mound, Laurence A. & Masumoto, Masami, 2005, The genus Thrips (Thysanoptera, Thripidae) in Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand, Zootaxa 1020 (1), pp. 1-64 : 15-16

Thrips aspinus sp.n.

Diagnosis: Female with body and legs yellow; antennal segments I & II yellow, III–VI yellow with progressively more extensive light brown shading distally, VII light brown; forewings pale; major setae pale to light brown.

Head broader than long, vertex and ocellar region transversely striate ( Fig. 1); ocellar setae III arising close together behind first ocellus; postocular setae I & III scarcely longer than setae II. Antennae 7­segmented. Pronotum transverse ( Fig. 1), surface with many transverse lines and at least 50 short stout discal setae; inner and outer postero­angular setae not longer than posteromarginal setae. Mesonotum ( Fig. 2) with no campaniform sensilla near anterior margin, median area closely striate. Metanotum ( Fig. 2) with arcuate transverse sculpture near anterior, reticulate medially but with no markings within reticles; median pair of setae not close to anterior margin; campaniform sensilla not present. Forewing first vein with about 8 setae on basal half and 3 setae on distal half; second vein with 15 to 18 setae; clavus with 5 marginal setae, terminal seta longest. Abdominal tergite I with irregular sculpture medially, campaniform sensilla close to posterior margin; remaining tergites with lines of sculpture absent mesad of setae S1; tergite II with 3 lateral marginal setae, V–VIII with chaetotaxy and ctenidia similar to other Thrips , but VI–VII with setae S3 unusually large ( Fig. 3) and ctenidia weakly developed; tergite VIII posteromarginal comb with slender microtrichia near lateral margins but replaced medially by narrow craspedum; tergite IX with anterior pair of campaniform sensilla not developed, X with no median split. Sternites and pleurotergites with numerous discal setae ( Fig. 4), sternite II with 12 posteromarginal setae and 3–5 discal setae; sternites III–VI with about 12 posteromarginal setae and 24 discal setae but several of these are close to posterior margin, VII with 6–8 posteromarginal setae and about 30 discal setae.

Measurements of holotype female in microns: Body length 1050. Head, length 65; width 145; ocellar setae III length 15. Pronotum, length 110; width 180; postero­angular setae 15. Forewing length 600. Antennal segments III–VII length 35, 35, 35, 48, 15.

Male, smaller and paler than female but similar in structure; antennal segment VI exceptionally long; sternites III–VII with slender transverse glandular area, VII with about 11 marginal setae and 13 discal setae.

Measurements of male paratype in microns: Body length 650. Antennal segments III– VII length 30, 30, 30, 55, 12.

Type material: Holotype ♀ Australia, Queensland, Mossman , from Mangifera indica flowers, 7.viii.2004 (LAM 4453) in ANIC.

Paratypes: 6♀ 1♂ collected with holotype; 20km south of Mossman , 3♀ from Mangifera indica flowers, 10.viii.2004 (LAM 4467); Cape Tribulation , 6♀ from Mangifera indica flowers, 8.vii.1995 (LAM2734); Cape Tribulation , 4♀ 2♂ from Syzygium gustavioides flowers, ix.2001 (S. Boulter ) .

Breeding: Taken at several sites in north­eastern Queensland, most of the available specimens are from the flowers of mango trees. However , several individuals were washed from the flowers of a native plant, Syzygium gustaviodes , but these are rather poorly preserved on microscope slides in Hoyers Mountant. The type series of 7♀ 1♂ from Mossman was beaten from mango flowers together with 39♀ 24♂ Thrips unispinus , 12♀ 16♂ Thrips hawaiiensis , and 5♀ of an unidentified species of Haplothrips .

Distribution: Australia, north Queensland.

Relationships: This new species is closely related to Thrips subnudula , the type species of the synonymic genus Ramaswamiahiella . In contrast to most members of the genus Thrips these share the following character states: sternal posteromarginal setae duplicated (12 instead of 6), tergites VI–VII with seta S3 larger than S2 (instead of shorter), tergite X with no median split. However, Thrips unispinus also shares the first of these character states, and all three species have ocellar setae III close together behind the first ocellus. Two other species of Thrips are described with unusually short pronotal postero­angular setae, T. brevisetosus Trybom from Kenya, and T. mirus Bhatti (= T. heveae Ananthakrishnan & Jagadish ) from India, but in T. aspinus the postero­angular setae are so short that they are not distinguished from the posteromarginal setae. The major setae of T. aspinus are unusual in being stout and slightly ridged, and the sexual dimorphism of the male antennae is possibly unique within Thrips genus.