Distinguishing features

Both sexes wingless. Body brown; fore tarsi yellow; extreme apices of fore femora, median area of fore tibiae, extreme base of antennal segment III, and apex of II yellowish; tube golden-yellow with a dark brown apex; major setae weakly shaded. Head about as wide as long, not sculptured; ocelli absent; compound eyes greatly prolonged ventrally, with 2 rows of large ommatidia; 1 pair of long, fine postocular setae and a second pair medially; 1 pair of ocellar setae shorter than postoculars; maxillary stylets wide apart, V-shaped, retracted about halfway into head (disarranged in available specimens). Antennae 7-segmented; segments III–VII pedicillate; segment II with a distinctive pattern around pore; segment III with 2 sense cones, segment IV with 4. Pronotum without sculpture; setae long, finely acute. Prosternal basantra weak; mesopresternum heavily eroded; mesonotum and metanotum small, transverse. Fore tarsus with inner margin slightly thickened; tooth absent. Pelta broad, slender, with faint lines of sculpture; tergal wing-retaining setae short, but median tergal setae on VII exceptionally long; tergite II eroded on lateral margin; posteromarginal tergal setae long, finely acute; tergite IX setae longer than tube; tube shorter than head, constricted apically.
Male similar to female but smaller; fore tarsal tooth present; sternites without reticulate areas; tergite II chaetotaxy similar to that in eurytis.

Related species

The genus Ozothrips appears to be closely related to Heptathrips and Cleistothrips, and includes five species, all known only from New Zealand. Unlike the other species of Ozothrips, all known specimens of O. janus are completely apterous, with no trace of a fore wing lobe.

Biological data

Feeding on fungal spores among the basal leave of Gahnia sp. (Cyperaceae).

Distribution data

Described from New Zealand (AK), but subsequently recorded from Norfolk Island (Mound & Wells, 2015).

Family name

PHLAEOTHRIPIDAE, IDOLOTHRIPINAE

Species name

Ozothrips janus Mound & Palmer

Original name and synonyms

Ozothrips janus Mound & Palmer, 1983: 26

References

Mound LA & Palmer JM (1983) The generic and tribal classification of spore-feeding Thysanoptera (Phlaeothripidae: Idolothripinae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). Entomology 46: 1–174.

Mound LA & Walker AK (1986) Tubulifera (Insecta: Thysanoptera). Fauna of New Zealand 10: 1–140.

Mound LA & Wells A (2015) Endemics and adventives: Thysanoptera (Insecta) Biodiversity of Norfolk, a tiny Pacific Island. Zootaxa 3964 (2): 183–210.