
Small to medium sized, macropterous or micropterous Phlaeothripinae, Haplothripini. Head slightly longer than wide, widest across genae behind large eyes; postocular setae small, with blunt to pointed apices; genae with minute grooves; mouth-cone short; maxillary stylets retracted to postocular setae, about one-fifth of head width apart with stout maxillary bridge. Antennae 8-segmented; segment III with 2 or 3 sense cones, IV with 2, 3 or 4 sense cones; VIII slightly constricted basally. Pronotum with little sculpture; anteromarginal and midlateral small, anteroangulars variable, epimeral and posteroangular setae long; notopleural sutures complete. Prosternal basantra present, ferna well developed; mesopresternum complete but narrow medially; metathoracic sternopleural sutures long but sometimes indistinct. Fore tarsal tooth present in both sexes, small in female. Fore wings weakly constricted medially, with duplicated cilia. Pelta triangular without sculpture; tergites II‒VII each with two pairs of wing-retaining setae, reduced in micropterae; tube shorter than head. Male with tergite IX setae S2 short and stout, sternite VIII without pore plate.
The members of this genus share most character states with species of Haplothrips, such that Bagnalliella is considered an unusual member of the Haplothripini in which all the species are leaf-feeding not flower-feeding.
The species of this genus all apparently breed on the foliage of Yucca plants. Some of the species have been distinguished from each other based on the number of antennal sense cones. However, Tree (2010) demonstrated that this character state is variable within populations of yuccae, the most common and widespread species.
Nine species of this genus live on Yucca plants and are all from western North America, althoug B. yuccae has been distributed widely around the world. In addition, one species described in Bagnalliella from New Guinea, and one described from East Africa, are probably not congeneric with the other nine.
Bagnalliella Karny, 1920: 41. Type species Cephalothrips yuccae Hinds 1902, by monotypy.
Eleven species are listed in this genus (ThripsWiki, 2023), but two of these are of doubtful relationships.
Euro-Mediterranean species
Bagnalliella yuccae (Hinds 1902)
ThripsWiki (2023). ThripsWiki - providing information on the World's thrips. <http://thrips.info/wiki/Main_Page>
Tree DJ (2010) Intrapopulation variation in an Australian population of the North American Thrips, Bagnalliella yuccae (Thysanoptera: Phlaeothripidae), a new record from Australia. Florida Entomologist 93: 346–351.