Distinguishing features

Female macroptera. Body and legs yellow, antennal segments II–VIII increasingly brown; fore wings pale. Antennae 8-segmented, III–IV with apical neck bearing forked sense cone. Head slightly wider than long; 3 pairs of ocellar setae, pair III between posterior ocelli and about as long as one ocellus; 4 pairs of small postocular setae in transverse row; maxillary palps 3-segmented. Pronotum transverse, with one pair of posteroangular setae; discal area with almost no sculpture. Metanotum with weak transverse reticulation, median setae behind anterior margin; campaniform sensilla present. Prosternal ferna weakly complete medially; mesofurca with spinula, metafurca with no spinula. Fore wing first vein with 2 widely spaced setae distally, second vein with about 12 setae; clavus with 5–6 veinal and one discal seta; posterior fringe cilia strongly wavy. Abdominal tergites II–VI with narrow posteromarginal craspedum; tergal discal area with little or no sculpture medially; VIII with complete comb of long slender microtrichia, weakly developed ctenidium anterolateral to spiracles. Sternites without discal setae, posterior margins with weakly lobed craspedum; VII median pair of setae arise submarginally.
Male macroptera. Similar to female but smaller; tergite VIII with complete marginal comb; IX with no strong setae; sternites III–VII with transverse pore plate; sternite IX with 30–40 broad-based microtrichia.

Related species

A total of 46 species are listed currently in the genus Oxythrips, with all but two from the Holarctic. However, a further 12 species are known only as fossils. The genus is probably related to Anaphothrips, but is distinguished because all of the species have a single pair of pronotal posteroangular setae. O. agathidis has the metanotal setae small and well behind the anterior margin of this sclerite, in contrast to the only other member of the genus recorded from Australia.

Biological data

Feeding and breeding on the leaves of Agathis sp. [Araucariaceae].

Distribution data

Known only from Australia, Queensland.

Family name

THRIPIDAE - THRIPINAE

Species name

Oxythrips agathidis Morison

Original name and synonyms

Oxythrips agathidis Morison, 1941: 204.

References

Morison GD (1941) Oxythrips agathidis sp.n. (Thysanoptera, Thripidae) from Queensland. Proceedings of the Royal entomological Society of London 10: 203–207.

Mound LA & Tree DJ (2011) New records and four new species of Australian Thripidae (Thysanoptera) emphasise faunal relationships between northern Australia and Asia. Zootaxa 2764 : 35–48. http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2011/f/zt02764p048.pdf