Thrips obscuratus (Crawford)

Mound, Laurence A. & Masumoto, Masami, 2005, The genus Thrips (Thysanoptera, Thripidae) in Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand, Zootaxa 1020 (1), pp. 1-64 : 38-39

Thrips obscuratus (Crawford)

Isoneurothrips obscuratus Crawford, 1941: 63

Diagnosis: Macropterous, rarely micropterous. Body, legs and antennae brown; forewing shaded with base usually paler; major setae dark. Antennae 7­ or 8­segmented; ocellar setae III arising outside ocellar triangle, postocular setae II minute ( Fig. 64 ). Pronotum with little sculpture, 4–8 discal setae of which one midlateral pair particularly long. Met­ anotum ( Fig. 65 ) closely striate, transversely on anterior half but longitudinally on posterior half, median setae arise near anterior margin, campaniform sensilla present. Forewing (when present) with first vein bearing complete row of setae. Abdominal tergite II with 3 lateral setae; tergite VIII with marginal comb complete but sometimes irregular ( Fig. 67 ); pleurotergites with 1–4 discal setae ( Fig. 66 ); sternite II with 3 pairs of marginal setae, sternites III–VII with 6 to 14 discal setae. Male yellow brown, sternites III–VII with transverse glandular area.

Breeding: Teulon and Penman (1990) recorded larvae of this thrips from 51 different species of plant in New Zealand, including 36 introduced plant species some of which are crops. These larvae were found almost entirely in flowers, although adults were found in other situations and on a much wider range of plants.

Distribution: A New Zealand endemic, this is the most abundant thrips in that country. Despite being highly polyphagous and associated with major exports such as apples and kiwi fruit, this thrips has never become established in any other country, including Australia.

Relationships: This species shares with four other species from New Zealand and three from New Caledonia the unusual apomorphy of having three, instead of two, pairs of marginal setae on the second abdominal sternite. These eight species are referred to as the Thrips obscuratus group ( Mound, 2005).

Figures

FIGURES 60–71. Thrips species. T. nigropilosus 60–61: (60) Meso­metanota; (61) Tergites III–IV. T. novocaledonensis 62–63: (62) Meso­metanota; (63) Tergites & pleurotergites IV–V. T. obscuratus 64–67: (64) Head & pronotum; (65) Meso­metanota; (66) Tergites & pleurotergites III–IV; (67) Tergites VII–VIII. T.orientalis 68–69: (68) Meso­metanota; (69) Forewing clavus. T. pallisetis 70–71: (70) Meso­metanota; (71) Tergites VII–X.