Taeniothrips bharokariiensis Kumar & Tyagi

Kumar, Vikas, Tyagi, Kaomud, Ghosh, Biswatosh & Dna, Devkant Singha, 2014, A new species of Taeniothrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) from India, Zootaxa 3884 (2), pp. 197-200 : 198-200

Taeniothrips bharokariiensis Kumar & Tyagi sp.n.

( Figs 1–10 )

Female macroptera. Body light brown including all femora, tibiae and tarsi mainly yellow; fore wing brown except pale proximal end, clavus brown; antennal segments I–II and V–VIII brown, III yellow, basal 0.25 part of IV yellow and 0.75 part brown ( Fig. 1 ). Head wider than long, slightly constricted just behind eyes, cheeks rounded; two pairs of ocellar setae present, pair I absent, pair III arising within the triangle, on tangent of anterior margin of posterior ocelli, longer than ocellar II; compound eyes without pigmented facets; postocular II and IV longer than I and III ( Fig. 5 ). Antennae 8- segmented, segment III and IV each with forked sense cones ( Fig. 4 ). Pronotum wider than long; posterior margin with three pairs of setae inner to major posteroangulars, median pair of setae longer than submedian pair ( Fig. 5 ); surface smooth but very faint transverse line near to the posterior margin; fore tarsus without claw like process. Mesonotum with transversely reticulate sculpture on anterior half and transversely striate on posterior half, median pair of setae ahead of posterior margin; anteromedian campaniform sensilla present. Metanotum with weak transverse lines on anterior half, smooth at middle or posterior half, with campaniform sensilla on anterior half; median pair of setae far behind the anterior margin, the distance between median pair of setae more than median and submedian pair ( Fig. 6 ). Fore wing first vein with 4+6 on basal half, 1 seta medially and 2 setae near to apex; second vein with 12 setae; clavus with 5 veinal and 1 discal seta ( Fig. 10 ). Tergites, sternites and laterotergites without accessory setae; tergites I–VII without sculpture; posterior margin of tergite VIII with long comb of microtrichia ( Fig.7 ), posterior margin of laterotergites with teeth. Sternites I–VIII with transverse line of sculpture; S2 setae on sternites VII arising at posterior margin.

Measurements (holotype female in microns). Body length 1750. Head, length 137; width across cheeks 150; width just behind the eyes 132; ocellar setae II 12, III 76 –78. Pronotum, length 132; width 192; posteroangular setae inner 115–118, outer 98–101. Fore wing, length 1025. Tergite IX, median dorsal setae 78; setal pair S1 130. Antenna length 396; segments I–VIII, L(W) 35(32), 43(27), 76(28), 81(29), 43(21), 61(20), 12(10), 21(7).

Male macroptera. Colour and structure similar to female ( Fig. 2 ). Sternites III–VII each with transverse pore plate ( Fig. 9 ). S1 and S2 setae of tergite IX long ( Fig. 8 ).

Measurements (paratype male in microns). Body length 1390. Head, length 124; width across cheeks 125; width just behind the eyes 110; ocellar setae III 52. Pronotum, length 112; width 157; posteroangular setae inner 75, outer 60. Fore wing, length 780. Sternal pore plate width III–VII 67, 62, 61, 60, 54. Tergite IX setae S1 45; S2 53. Antenna length 338; segments I–VIII, L(W) 23(30), 40(25), 62(21), 62(21), 39(18), 64(18), 9(8), 16(5).

Material studied. Holotype female (macroptera), INDIA, Himachal Pradesh, Mandi District: Bharokari, (32º42'69.5" N 77º07' 46.3'E, 1925 m) from ferns, 4.vi.2014, Vikas, Kaomud & Biswatosh (Reg. No. 5958/H17). Paratypes: 1 female and 1 male with same data as holotype, (Reg. No. 5958/ H17 to 5960/H17). Holotype and paratypes deposited in the National Zoological Collections (NZC), Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, India.

Etymology. This new species is named after its type locality.

Comments. This new species is the third member in genus Taeniothrips where S2 setae on abdominal sternite VII are positioned marginally. The other two species with same positioning of setae S2 are inconsequens and arbuti ( Mound et al. 2012) . The new species can be separated from the Indian species T. major described from Himalayas by the following characters: forewing brown with clavus except pale proximal end (brown with light distal end in major ); distance of median pair of setae is less than the distance between median and submedian (distance between median pair of metanotal setae is more than the distance between median and submedian in major ); abdominal tergites IV–VII without reticulations (with weak reticulation medially between setal pair S 2 in major ); male sternal pore plates are transverse in shape and more than 50 microns wide (oval in shape and less than 40 microns wide in major ).

It can be separated from inconsequens by the absence of curved terminal claw on fore tarsus (with claw in inconsequens ) and fore wing first vein with 2 setae distally (3–6 setae distally in inconsequens ). This new species was compared with two paratype specimens of arbuti (Registration No. 2069/H17 to 2070/H17) available at National Zoological Collection (NZC), Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata. It can be separated from female of T. arbuti by the following characters: the fore wing clavus brown; fore wing first vein with 1 seta medially and 2 setae distally; metanotal median pair of setae far behind the anterior margin and close to each other; male body colour brown including antennal segments I–II. In contrast arbuti has: fore wing clavus pale; fore wing first vein with 1–2 setae medially and 3–6 setae distally; metanotal median pair of setae arising near the anterior margin and close to submedian pair. The body colour of the male is pale including antennal segments I–II.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 2. Taeniothrips bharokariiensis (1) Female; (2) Male.

FIGURES 3 – 10. Taeniothrips bharokariiensis (3) Thoracic sterna, female; (4) Antenna, female; (5) Head and pronotum, female; (6) Meso- and metanota, female; (7) Tergites VIII – X, female; (8) Tergites VIII – X with genitalia, male; (9) Sternites III – VII, male; (10) Fore wing, female.