Aeolothrips brunneipictusAeolothrips brunneipictusThe available specimens of this species are not in a suitable condition to prepare a detailed description. Apparently similar to A. bicolor and A. albicinctus, it was described as having paired brown spots on the yellow second and third abdominal tergites.
A. brunneipictus has the basal abdominal segments sharply yellow, as in A. albicinctus and A. auricestus that are also known in California. At least two other Aeolothrips species with the abdomen bicolored occur in western USA, A. aureus Moulton and A. bicolor Hinds, and these five species apparently all live at ground level as predators of small arthropods. About 105 species are placed currently in the genus Aeolothrips. Most of these are from the Palaearctic Region (including the Mediterranean, Iran and northern India, but with five species extending through eastern Africa to South Africa), with about 30 species from the Nearctic (mainly western USA). Only one species of this genus is known from the Neotropics, A. fasciatipennis described from Chile, but Mound & Marullo (1996) indicate this is probably the same as A. fasciatus.
Probably associated with grasses, and presumably predatory.
California, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah.
AEOLOTHRIPIDAE
Aeolothrips brunneipictus Bailey
Aeolothrips brunneipictus Bailey, 1951: 53
Bailey SF (1951) The genus Aeolothrips Haliday in North America. Hilgardia 21: 43-80.
Mound LA & Marullo R (1996) The Thrips of Central and South America: An Introduction. Memoirs on Entomology, International 6: 1-488.
