Distinguishing features

Both sexes fully winged. Body brown to dark brown, fore tarsi and base of antennal segment III yellow; fore wing pale with base extensively shaded. Antennae 8-segmented, segment III with 2 sense cones, IV with 4 sense cones; VIII short and broad at base. Head slightly longer than wide; maxillary stylets one third of head width apart, retracted to postocular setae, maxillary bridge complete; postocular setae acute, usually not reaching posterior margin of compound eyes. Pronotal setae small and acute, anteromarginal and midlateral setae no longer than discal setae; epimeral sutures complete; prosternal basantra and ferna present, mesopresternum eroded to paired lateral triangles. Fore tarsal tooth minute in female, large in large male. Fore wing constricted medially, with 7–12 duplicated cilia, sub-basal setae acute or blunt. Tergite IX setae S1 bluntly pointed, much shorter than tube, S2 acute.
Male with no pore plate on sternite VIII; tergite IX setae S2 short and stout; pseudovirga of aedeagus slender.

Related species

The identity of H. leucanthemi is a problem that merits further study. This species is particularly associated with large daisy flowers, such as those of Chrysanthemum leucanthemum. However, there is a form in red clover flowers, Trifolium pratense, that is commonly known as H. niger and is considered to be a parthenogenetic strain of H. leucanthemi. Within the genus this thrips is remarkable because of the unusually short setae on the head and pronotum (Mound & Minaei, 2007). The genus Haplothrips, one of the three most species rich genera of Thysanoptera, currently includes about 245 species worldwide (Mound & Minaei, 2007). These species are found mainly from Europe across the Old World, and only a few come from South America (Mound & Zapater, 2003). Although 17 Haplothrips species are listed from Mexico and North America (Mound & Marullo, 1996) only six of these are recorded from California (Hoddle et al. 2004). Little is known of the biology of the Californian species, although elsewhere the species of Haplothrips are associated particularly with the flowers of Poaceae and Asteraceae.

Biological data

Breeding and pupating within the flowers of various Asteraceae, but also on Trifolium spp. [Fabaceae] and Plantago spp. [Plantaginaceae].

Distribution data

Under the name H. niger, this species is listed by Cott (1956: 111) as widespread across the northern parts of North America into California. It is also widespread across Europe to Iran, and is known from New Zealand and southern Australia, with a few records from Chile and Argentina.

Family name

PHLAEOTHRIPIDAE, PHLAEOTHRIPINAE

Species name

Haplothrips leucanthemi (Schrank)

Original name and synonyms

Thrips leucanthemi Schrank, 1781: 298
Phloeothrips niger Osborn, 1883: 154
Phloeothrips armatus Lindeman, 1887: 335
Phloeothrips obscuricornis Reuter, 1909: 20
Haplothrips trifolii Priesner, 1919: 130
Zygothrips wyomingensis Watson, 1923: 82.

References

Cott HE (1956) Systematics of the suborder Tubulifera (Thysanoptera) in California. University of California, Berkeley, Publications in Entomology 13: 1–216.

Hoddle M, Mound LA & Nakahara S (2004) Thysanoptera recorded from California, USA: a checklist. Florida Entomologist 87: 317–323.

Mound LA & Marullo R (1996) The Thrips of Central and South America: An Introduction. Memoirs on Entomology, International 6: 1–488.

Mound LA & Minaei K (2007) Australian insects of the Haplothrips lineage (Thysanoptera – Phlaeothripinae). Journal of Natural History 41: 2919–2978.

Mound LA & Zapater MC (2001)South American Haplothrips species (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae), with a new species of biological control interest to Australia against weedy Heliotropium amplexicaule (Boraginaceae). Neotropical Entomology 32: 437–442.

Thysanoptera Californica