Print Fact SheetAnisopilothrips

Generic diagnosis

Female macropterous. Head wider than long, strongly reticulate, projecting slightly in front of eyes; ocellar region elevated; occipital ridge absent, cheeks constricted at base; one pair of postocular setae; maxillary palps 2-segmented. Antennae 8-segmented, segment I without paired dorso-apical setae; III with forked sense cone, IV with one forked and one simple sense cone. Pronotum strongly reticulate, no long setae. Mesonotum reticulate with complete median longitudinal division, anteromedian campaniform sensilla absent. Metanotum with strong reticulation medially, median setae behind anterior margin, campaniform sensilla present. Fore wing with anterior fringe cilia longer than costa setae; first vein with a wide gap in setal row, two setae distally; second vein with row of six setae; clavus with four veinal but no discal setae; posteromarginal fringe cilia wavy. Prosternal ferna divided; basantra membranous and without setae; mesosternal endofurca without spinula; metasternal endofurca lyre-shaped not reaching mesothorax. Legs with strong reticulation, tarsi 1-segmented. Tergites without ctenidia, with entire craspedum; tergite II with group of stout recurved microtrichia anterolaterally; III-VII with raised sculpture laterally; VIII posterior margin without comb; IX without anterior campaniform sensilla; X median split complete. Sternites with two submedian clusters of round areolae connected by parallel striations, craspedum entire on posterior margin; II–VII with three pairs of posteromarginal setae, VII with two small additional setae near posterior margin.
Male not known.

Biological data

Presumably leaf-feeding, but with few specific host plants, although at various sites on the Hawaiian Islands this species was found commonly on Alyxia stellata [Apocynaceae] (Mound et al., 2017).

Distribution data

Recorded widely around the world in tropical areas, but apparently not from the continent of Africa nor from India, and in China only from the South.

Nomenclatural data

Anisopilothrips Stannard & Mitri, 1962: 186. Type species Heliothrips venustulus Priesner 1923, by monotypy.

Only one species is placed in the genus (ThripsWiki, 2020), and this is recorded from southern China:

venustulus (Priesner, 1923: 89). (Heliothrips)

Relationship data

Thripidae sub-family Panchaetothripinae: this group is represented widely around the world, particularly in tropical areas, and comprises about 40 genera. Anisopilothrips shares with seven genera that comprise the Astrothrips group, or Tryphactothripini, the presence of a paired group of recurved stout microtrichia anterolaterally on the second abdominal tergite (Mound et al., 2001).

References

Mound LA, Marullo R & Trueman JWH (2001) The greenhouse thrips, Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis, and its generic relationships within the sub-family Panchaetothripinae (Thysanoptera; Thripidae). Journal of Insect Systematics and Evolution 32: 1–12.

Mound LA, Matsunaga J, Bushe B, Hoddle MS & Wells A (2017) Adventive Thysanoptera Species on the Hawaiian Islands: New Records and Putative Host Associations. Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 49: 17–28.

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