Distinguishing features

Both sexes fully winged. Body and legs brown, tarsi and apex of fore tibiae yellow; antennal segments I–II dark brown, VI–VII light brown, III–V mainly yellow with apices shaded; fore wings light brown. Antennae 7-segmented; segments III–IV with sense cone forked. Head with 2 pairs of ocellar setae; pair III small, arising on or just outside anterior margins of ocellar triangle; postocular setae I & III longer than II & IV. Pronotum with transverse lines of sculpture; 2 pairs of posteroangular setae, 3 pairs of posteromarginal setae. Metanotum with narrow longitudinal reticulation on posterior half, irregular lines at anterior; median setae close to anterior margin; campaniform sensilla absent. Fore wing first vein with 3 setae on distal half; second vein with row of about 12 setae. Abdominal tergite II with 3 lateral marginal setae; V–VIII with paired ctenidia, on VIII posteromesad to spiracles; tergite VIII posteromarginal comb complete, microtrichia slender; pleurotergites without discal setae. Sternite II with 2 pairs of marginal setae, III–VII with 3 pairs; sternite II without discal setae, III–VII with about eight discal setae in irregular transverse row.
Male as dark as female but smaller; tergite VIII posterior margin with no comb; sternites III–VII with broadly oval pore plate.

Related species

The genus Thrips is the second largest genus in the Thysanoptera, and currently includes, worldwide, over 290 species. All members of genus Thrips lack ocellar setae I on the head, and they all have ctenidia on tergite VIII posteromesad to the spiracles. Other characters, such as number of antennal segments, number of setae on the fore wing veins, and number of discal setae on the sternites are variable between species (Palmer, 1992; Nakahara, 1994; Mound & Masumoto, 2005). Females of Thrips trehernei are very similar to females of Thrips physapus, the type-species of this genus, but have slightly longer pronotal setae. However, the males of physapus are yellow, whereas those of trehernei are brown. Females of these two species have been distinguished by the following formula (Pitkin, 1976b):

physapus - A+2B+C = less than 430 microns
trehernei - A+2B+C = more than 450 microns
Where A=pronotal posteroangular seta length; B=tergite IX seta S3 length; C=tergite X length.

Biological data

Feeding and breeding in the flowers of its host plants. Common on Taraxacum in Britain, but also breeding in many other yellow flowered Asteraceae.

Distribution data

Recorded throughout Britain to northern Scotland (Mound et al., 1976). Widespread in Europe and beyond to Iran (Minaei, 2013), and across the northern Holarctic region (Nakahara, 1994).

Family name

THRIPIDAE - THRIPINAE

Species name

Thrips trehernei Priesner

Original name and synonyms

Thrips trehernei Priesner, 1927: 356
Thrips magna Priesner, 1927: 355
Thrips taraxaci Moulton, 1936: 109
Thrips hukkineni Priesner, 1937: 108

References

Minaei K (2013) Thrips (Insecta, Thysanoptera) of Iran: a revised and updated checklist. ZooKeys 330: 53–74.

Mound LA & Masumoto M (2005) The genus Thrips (Thysanoptera, Thripidae) in Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand. Zootaxa 1020: 1–64.

Mound LA, Morison GD, Pitkin BR & Palmer JM (1976) Thysanoptera. Handbooks for the Identification of British Insects 1 (11): 1–79.

Nakahara S (1994) The genus Thrips Linnaeus (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) of the New World. United States Department of Agriculture. Technical Bulletin 1822: 1–183.

Palmer JM (1992) Thrips (Thysanoptera) from Pakistan to the Pacific: a review. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Entomology Series 61 (1): 1–76.

Pitkin BR (1976b) Notes on Thrips physapus L., hukkineni Preisner, and fuscipennis Haliday (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) in Britain. Entomologist's Gazette 27: 173–178.

Thrips of the British Isles