Distinguishing features

Female macroptera. Body largely yellow, but antennae dark brown with segment III apex yellow; head with light brown marking behind each eye; pronotum with pair of irregular longitudinal light brown markings, posteroangular setae dark; tergites III-VII with brown area medially and small brown areas laterally; major setae dark on IX-X, apex of X dark; fore wing almost uniformly weakly shaded but faintly darker around veinal fork. Head wider than long, with weak median transverse ridge; ocellar setae pair I present, sometimes arranged one in front of the other; setae III about as long as distance between posterior ocelli; eyes without pigmented facets. Antennae 8-segmented; segment I without paired dorso-apical setae; III and IV with apex narrowed and sense cone forked; II with microtrichia on dorsal surface, III–VI with many microtrichia on both surfaces. Pronotum with two pairs of posteroangular setae, three pairs of posteromarginal setae. Mesonotum transversely reticulate, median setae in front of posterior margin; anterior campaniform sensilla present. Metanotum with weak equiangular reticulation, median setae not at anterior margin, but one or two slender setae between the major setae and close to anterior margin; paired campaniform sensilla near posterior margin; metascutellum with little or no sculpture. Prosternal ferna complete medially; basantra membranous, without setae; prospinasternum broad and transverse. Mesosternum with sternopleural suture complete; endofurca with spinula. Metasternal endofurca without spinula. Fore wing first vein with wide gap in setal row, only two setae on distal half; second vein with complete row of setae; clavus with five veinal and one discal setae. Tarsi 2-segmented. Tergites without ctenidia or craspeda, no sculpture medially, setae S1 small and wide apart; VIII with group of microtrichia anterior to spiracle, posterior margin with regular comb of long microtrichia; IX with anterior campaniform sensilla present, MD setae long; X with split almost complete. Sternites III–VII with three pairs of long marginal setae, II with two; sternite VII setae S1 and S2 in front of margin.
Male not known.

Related species

Currently there are four species listed in the genus Lefroyothrips (ThripsWiki, 2020), but further undescribed species are known from southeast Asia, northern Australia, and the Pacific.

Biological data

Two females taken from Syzigium [Myrtaceae]

Distribution data

Northern Queensland

Family name

THRIPIDAE - THRIPINAE

Species name

Lefroyothrips sp. A

References

Zhang SM, Mound LA, & Hastings A (2018) Thysanoptera Chinensis. Thripidae Genera from China. Lucidcentral.org, Identic Pty Ltd, Queensland, Australia. https://keys.lucidcentral.org/keys/v3/thysanoptera_chinensis/