Trichromothrips cyperaceae

Recognition data

Distinguishing features

Female fully winged. Body yellow, abdominal apex and distal antennal segments light brown; fore wings pale. Head wider than long; 2 pairs of ocellar setae, pair III longer than width of eye; one small tubercle on inter-antennal projection; ocellar region with no sculpture, vertex with a few transverse lines. Antennae 8-segmented; segment I with paired small setae on dorsal apex; segments III–IV with small slender forked sensorium. Pronotum without sculpture; 2 pairs of long posteroangular setae, 2 pairs of posteromarginal setae. Metanotum without sculpture; median setae far back from anterior margin; no campaniform sensilla. Fore wing first vein with 2 setae on distal half; second vein with about 12 setae. Abdominal tergites with weak sculpture lines laterally; tergite VIII with no marginal comb; tergite X with no longitudinal split. Sternites III–VII with 6–12 discal setae.

Related and similar species

The genus Trichromothrips includes worldwide a total of 34 species (Masumoto & Okajima, 2005), including species that at one time were placed in the genus Dorcadothrips. A second species recorded from California, T. xanthius (Williams), can be distinguished by the presence laterally on abdominal sternites V–VI of paired dark, coarsely-grained areas of sculpture. T. xanthius is apparently associated with orchids (Bhatti, 2000).

Taxonomic data

Current valid name

Trichromothrips cyperaceae (Bianchi)

Original name and synonyms

• Taeniothrips cyperaceae Bianchi, 1945: 283

Family placement

Thripidae, Thripinae

Biological data

Life history

No information

Host plants

Cyperus rotundus (Cyperaceae) (Bhatti, 2000).

Tospoviruses vectored

None

Crop damage

None

Distribution data

Area of origin

Not known

Distribution

Bermuda, California, Hawaii