Generic diagnosis

Phlaeothripinae with maxillary stylets unusually broad, 4–6 microns wide. Head usually constricted behind eyes; postocular setae long and capitate; stylets about one-fifth of head width apart and retracted to postocular setae. Antennae 8-segmented, III with 2 or 3 sense cones, IV with 2, 3 or 4 sense cones; VIII long and constricted to base. Pronotum with 5 pairs of major capitate setae (rarely 4); notopleural sutures usually complete. Prosternal basantra absent; mesopresternum transverse; metathoracic sternopleural sutures absent. Fore tarsal tooth usually absent in both sexes. Fore wing with duplicated cilia (rarely with none). Pelta variably bell-shaped to triangular, with lateral area unsculptured; campaniform sensilla present or absent; wing-retaining setae on tergites II and III commonly with apices uncinate; tergite IX setae long, intermediate pair (iS) almost as long as setal pair S1; tube shorter than head. Male without sternal pore plates.

Nomenclatural data

Apelaunothrips Karny, 1925: 82. Type species Ophidothrips medioflavus Karny 1925, by monotypy.

This is an Oriental genus comprising 40 described species (ThripsWiki, 2022).

Australian species
Apelaunothrips desleyae Mound, 2013: 189
Apelaunothrips madrasensis (Ananthakrishnan, 1964: 109)
Apelaunothrips tasmani Mound, 1974: 18

Relationship data

This genus is possibly related to Hoplandrothrips amongst the Phlaeothripinae, despite the relatively broad maxillary stylets (Mound 2013).

Distribution data

The members of this genus have been found widely between India, Japan, Indonesia and northern Australia. The record of madrasensis from Australian is based on specimens from the Territory of Christmas Island (Mound 2019).

Biological data

The species of this genus are fungus-feeding in leaf litter, and possibly feed on small fungal spores.

References

Mound LA (2013) Species diversity in the Palaeotropical leaf-litter genus Apelaunothrips (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripinae). Zootaxa 3741(1):181–193.

Mound LA (2019) Thrips (Thysanoptera) of the Australian Territory of Christmas Island, Indian Ocean. Australian Entomologist 46 (4): 167-170.

Okajima S (1979) A revisional study of the genus Apelaunothrips (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae). Systematic Entomology 4: 39–64.

ThripsWiki (2022) ThripsWiki - providing information on the World's thrips. Available from: http://thrips.info/wiki/ (Accessed 15.iii.2022)