Print Fact SheetGastrothrips

Generic diagnosis

Medium sized, usually macropterous Idolothripinae. Head about as long as wide or longer; postocular setae elongate, ocellar setae usually short; genae often with stout setae; eyes moderately large. Mouth-cone short and rounded; maxillary stylets usually V-shaped, retracted to middle of head. Antennae 8-segmented, segment VIII usually long and slender; III with 1 or 2 sense-cones, IV with 3 sense-cones. Pronotum transverse, shorter than head; notopleural sutures complete or incomplete. Prosternal basantra present, ferna and mesopresternum well developed; metathoracic sternopleural sutures present. Metanotal median setae usually elongate. Fore tarsal tooth present in male, present or absent in female. Fore wings, with or without duplicated cilia. Pelta usually triangular with small lateral wings; tergites II–VII each with a pair of well-developed sigmoid wing-retaining setae. Tube straight-sided or with apex sharply constricted; anal setae shorter than tube.

Relationships

This genus is the sole member of the subtribe Gastrothripina, one of six subtribes in the Tribe Pygothipini of the Idolothripinae (Mound & Palmer, 1983).

Biology

The members of this genus are all thought to feed on fungal spores on dead branches.

Distribution

Species now placed in Gastrothrips have been described from widely around the world, particularly in the tropics. The only species recorded in Europe was described from the island of Madeira.

Nomenclature

Gastrothrips Hood, 1912: 156. Type species Gastrothrips ruficauda Hood, by original designation.

There are 38 species listed in this genus, mainly from tropical countries (ThripsWiki, 2023). The one listed below was described as the only species in a genus Paragastrothrips because it has a longer head and broader pelta than typical members of Gastrothrips.

Euro-Mediterraneanspecies
Gastrothrips mauli (zur Strassen, 1977).

References

Mound LA & Palmer JM (1983) The generic and tribal classification of spore-feeding Thysanoptera (Phlaeothripidae: Idolothripinae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). Entomology 46: 1–174.

ThripsWiki (2023). ThripsWiki - providing information on the World's thrips. <http://thrips.info/wiki/Main_Page>

zur Strassen R (1977) Studie zur Frühjahrsfauna der Fransenflügler auf den Madeira-Inseln im Atlantik nebst Daten zur Abundanz und Faunistik (Insecta: Thysanoptera). Boletim do Museu municipal Funchal 31: 5–78.