Psilothrips pardalotusPsilothrips pardalotusFemale fully winged. Body yellow to light brown, head and pronotum usually mottled; fore wings weakly shaded. Antennae 8-segmented; segments III & IV each with a small forked sense cone. Head wider than long, ocellar region raised; three pairs of ocellar setae present, pair III on sides of triangle; compound eyes with six pigmented ommatidia. Pronotum with irregular transverse sculpture lines; one pair of prominent posteroangular setae, posterior margin with two pairs of setae. Metanotum with concentric reticulation on posterior half; median setae far back from anterior margin. Fore wing relatively broad; first vein with two setae distally, second vein with about 8 setae; costa with setae but no cilia; apex with small sub-apical lobe bearing many long microtrichia ventrally. Abdominal tergites with transverse reticulation medially; tergites II–VIII with median setae arising on antecostal ridge, longer than distance between their bases; tergites IV–VI with striate sculpture laterally bearing a few short microtrichia; tergite VIII with no posteromarginal comb. Sternites III–VII with about eight discal setae.
The genus Psilothrips includes five species, three from the Mediterranean region between the Canary Islands and India, and two from western USA (Minaei & Mound, 2015). These species are unusual in having a pair of long setae medially on each tergite that arise from the antecostal ridge.
Presumably feeding on leaves, and recorded from Atriplex, Allenrolfea, and particularly Sarcobatus vermiculatus [Chenopodiaceae].
Known from Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Utah.
THRIPIDAE - THRIPINAE
Psilothrips pardalotus Hood
Psilothrips pardalotus Hood, 1927: 198
Minaei K & Mound LA (2015) Thysanoptera disjunct distribution between western America and the Mediterranean with a new Psilothrips species (Thripidae) from Iran. Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift 62(1): 1–7.
