Distinguishing features

Female macropterous; body dark brown; all tarsi and bases and apices of tibiae yellow; antennal segment II dark brown, III and IV yellow with apical half light brown, V mainly yellow with apex shaded; fore wing brown, with two white cross bands, sub-basally and sub-apically, also extreme apex pale. Head not constricted at base. Antennae 8-segmented, III and IV with long forked sensorium, VIII at least twice as long as VII. Pronotum reticulate, many markings within each reticle, no long setae. Metanotum irregularly reticulate, one pair of major setae near anterior margin. Tarsi elongate but 1-segmented; hind coxae with coiled internal apodeme. Fore wing second vein with about six setae; costal cilia almost as long as costal setae. Tergite lateral thirds with transverse, closely-parallel lines, no markings between these; VIII with craspedum medially, tooth-like microtrichia laterally; median split on X about half as long as tergite.
Male tergite IX with three pairs of stout setae medially, the median pair thorn-like; sternites III-VII with slender transverse pore plate.

Related species

Caliothrips is a genus of 23 species. Most of these are from the New World, with ten in North or Meso-America and three from Carribean Islands. Four species are from Africa and three from Asia, and two species extend into Australia. C. striatopterus has the abdominal tergites with transverse striae, but unlike C. quadrifasciatus the extreme apex of the fore wing is white.

Biological data

Breeding on the leaves of various Poaceae, including sugar cane and Zea mays.

Distribution data

Described from Java, but widespread in the warmer parts of Australia from Brisbane to Thursday Is., in the Torres Straits; also Broken Hill (N.S.W.), Tennant Creek in Northern Territory, and Broome and Kununurra (W.A.).

Family name

THRIPIDAE, PANCHAETOTHRIPINAE

Species name

Caliothrips striatopterus (Kobus)

Original name and synonyms

Thrips striatopterus Kobus, 1893: 156
Heliothrips sculptilis Hood, 1918: 123.

References

ThripsWiki (2020) Thrips Wiki-providing information on the World’s thrips. Available from: http://thrips.info/wiki/Main Page [accessed 28.viii.2019].

Wilson TH (1975) A monograph of the subfamily Panchaetothripinae (Thysanoptera: Thripidae). Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 23: 1–354.