Print Fact SheetOrganothrips

Generic diagnosis

Female macropterous. Head as long as wide, projecting in front of eyes; maxillary palps 2-segmented; eyes with several pairs of pigmented facets; ocellar setae I absent, III long and anterior to triangle; four pairs of postocular setae. Antennae 8-segmented, segment I with paired dorso-apical setae; III and IV with short simple sense-cones; III–VI without microtrichia. Pronotum weakly trapezopidal, without sculpture lines medially; with one pair of long posteroangular setae; three pairs of posteromarginal setae. Mesonotum with median pair of setae far from posterior margin; anteromedian campaniform sensilla absent. Metanotum reticulate medially; median pair of setae on posterior third of sclerite; campaniform sensilla absent. Fore wing first vein setal row with wide gap medially and two setae near apex; second vein with about five widely spaced setae; clavus setae small, three veinal and one discal; posteromarginal fringe cilia almost straight. Prosternal ferna weak and divided; basantra membranous, with two or more setae; prospinasternum broad and transverse. Mesosternum with sternopleural sutures incomplete; meso and metasternal endofurca without spinula. Tarsi 1-segmented; fore tibia inner apex with expanded fimbriate seta. Tergites II–VII transversely reticulate, median setae as wide apart as their length, posterior margins laterally with row of microtrichia; tergite I with a few microtrichia on margin medially; VIII with comb complete; IX with anterior pair of campaniform sensilla, MD setae slender; X with complete split. Sternites II–VII each with three pairs of marginal setae, all arising at margin; microtrichia usually present laterally on margins.
Male micropterous, head without ocelli; tergite IX without stout setae; sternites each with multiple small pore plates.

Biological data

Two species in this genus are known to breed in the mucilage on stems of aquatic plants, including Colocasia [Araceae], Eichornia [Pontederiaceae] and Typha [Typhaceae]. The other species are associated with with grasses or Cyperaceae.

Distribution data

Of the six species in this genus, two are known only from southern China, with the other four from India, Malaysia, northern Australia and the Pacific Islands.

Nomenclatural data

Organothrips Hood, 1940: 423. Type species Organothrips bianchii Hood, 1940, by monotypy.
Graminothrips Zhang & Tong, 1992: 82. Type species Graminothrips cyperi Zhang & Tong, 1992, by original designation. Synonymised by Zhang et al. 2018: 375.

Six species are recognised in this genus (ThripsWiki, 2020), and two of these are known only from China:

cyperi (Zhang & Tong, 1992: 82). (Graminothrips)
longisetosus (Zhang & Tong, 1992: 84). (Graminothrips)

Relationship data

Thripidae sub-family Thripinae: this is a diverse group involving more than 230 genera. Species of Organothrips share a considerable number of character states with the species of Octothrips, and it is possible that these genera may be related to Trichromothrips.

References

Mound LA (2000) The aquatic thrips Organothrips indicus Bhatti (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) in Queensland, and a new species, O. wrighti, from tropical Australia. Australian Journal of Entomology 39: 10–14.

ThripsWiki (2018). ThripsWiki - providing information on the World's thrips. <http://thrips.info/wiki/Main_Page>

Zhang SM, Wang ZH, Li YJ & Mound LA (2018) One new species, two generic synonyms and eight new records of Thripidae from China (Thysanoptera). Zootaxa 4418 (4): 370–378.

Zhang WQ & Tong XL (1992) A new genus of Thripidae (Thysanoptera) with two new species from China. Entomotaxonomia 14: 81–86.