Distinguishing features

Female macroptera. Colour variable, from largely yellow with brown tergite markings and yellow legs, to mainly brown with legs extensively brown; antennal segment I commonly white but sometimes light brown, II dark brown, III–IX light brown; fore wings weakly shaded along veins; major setae at abdomen apex dark. Head wider than long; transverse reticulation behind eyes, weakly sculptured in ocellar triangle; ocellar setae III inside triangle, usually no further apart than diameter of first ocellus; eyes with 6 pigmented facets. Antennae 9-segmented; III–IV weakly constricted at apex with prominent forked sense cone; II with a few microtrichia. Pronotum with irregular sculpture lines; with no long setae, discal setae sometimes weakly thickened rather than finely setaceous. Prosternal ferna almost entire. Metascutum reticulate, reticles usually with internal markings, median setae well posterior to anterior margin, campaniform sensilla absent. Fore wing first vein with about 8 setae basally, 2 setae medially and 2 setae distally; second vein with 10–16 setae including one setae sometimes present basal to vein fork; clavus with 5–7 veinal setae plus one seta at base. Abdominal tergites II–VII with no sculpture medially, lateral sculpture of closely spaced lines with Scirtothrips-like microtrichia not extending mesad of setae S2; median pair of setae on IV–VII closer together than their length; VI (and often VII) with setae S3 as large as S4; VIII with long regular posteromarginal comb.
Male macroptera. Similar to female; tergite VIII with two pairs of small stout setae medially; sternites III–VI with small C-shaped pore plate.

Related species

There are 43 species of Anaphothrips known from Australia (Mound & Masumoto, 2009), out of a total of 86 species worldwide (ThripsWiki, 2020). Many of these species have the antennae clearly 9-segmented, others clearly have only 8 segments, but several species have an intermediate condition with segment VI bearing a partial and often oblique transverse suture. The pronotal setae are short, and the fore wing clavus has no discal seta. Some species in this genus can be recognised only in the male sex, but A. cecili females are unusual amongst the Australian Anaphothrips in having setae S3 on tergite VI (and VII) as long as setae S4.

Biological data

Feeding and breeding on the leaves of Zygophyllum apiculatum [Zygophyllaceae], Lycium ferossissimum [Solanaceae] and Duboisia sp. [Solanaceae].

Distribution data

Recorded widely from Queensland, Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Tasmania, Western Australia and South Australia.

Family name

THRIPIDAE - THRIPINAE

Species name

Anaphothrips cecili Girault

Original name and synonyms

Anaphothrips cecili Girault, 1928: 1
Hemianaphothrips concinnus Morison, 1931: 245.

References

Mound LA & Masumoto M (2009) Australian Thripinae of the Anaphothrips genus-group (Thysanoptera), with three new genera and thirty-three new species. Zootaxa 2042: 1–76. http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2009/f/zt02042p076.pdf