Cartomothrips browni

Recognition data

Distinguishing features

Female fully winged. Body, legs and antennae dark brown, antennal segments III slightly paler; fore wings pale with extreme base and clavus dark. Head slightly longer than wide; cheeks confluent with eyes, sharply constricted to sub-basal neck; posterior margin with two projections; postocular setae wide apart and far behind eyes, bluntly pointed; dorsal surface with narrow transverse reticulation; maxillary stylets retracted almost to eyes, close together medially. Antennae 8-segmented; segments III and IV each with 3 short and broadly based sensoria; VIII not narrowed to base. Pronotum short, not strongly sculptured; only epimeral setae elongate; epimeral sutures complete. Prosternal ferna not developed; basantra large; mesopresternum with pair of lateral triangles and subcircular median area. Fore tarsus with tooth. Metanotum reticulate, sternopleural sutures long. Fore wings broad, parallel sided; 40–50 duplicated cilia present. Pelta reticulate; tergites II–VII with 2 pairs of sigmoid wing-retaining setae, II–III with one or two extra pairs of curved setae anterolaterally; tergite IX setae blunt, S1 shorter than tube.
Male similar to female, but variable in body size; large male with fore femora swollen, tarsal tooth broad and as long as tarsal width; tergite IX setae S2 stout and very short, scarcely 25 microns long; sternite VIII largely occupied by pore plate.

Related and similar species

There are four species recognised in the genus Cartomothrips, all from Australia. However, C. browni has been distributed widely by the trade in Eucalyptus seeds to many places where these trees have been introduced. It is unique among the species of this genus for having exceptionally broad sensoria on antennal segments III and IV.

Taxonomic data

Current valid name

  • Cartomothrips browni Stannard

Original name and synonyms

  • Cartomothrips browni Stannard, 1962: 39
  • Treherniella niger Moulton, 1968: 123

Family placement

Phlaeothripidae, Phlaeothripinae

Biological data

Life history

Breeding and pupating within old seed capsules

Host plants

Various Eucalyptus species 

Tospoviruses vectored

None

Crop damage

None

Distribution data

Area of origin

Eastern Australia

Distribution

Australia, New Zealand, Kenya, Brazil, USA - California,