Body dark brown; tarsi yellow and tibiae extensively brown, antennal segments I–II brown, III–VI extensively yellow; fore wing banded, brown basally with a white band sub-basally and sub-apically, and a weak pale area medially; extreme apex dark. Head strongly sculptured and not distinctly constricted behind eyes; ocellar region strongly elevated. Antennae 6-segmented; III & IV with forked sense cones; V with a partial suture; VI elongated. Pronotum reticulate, without long setae; without internal markings on reticles. Mesothoracic endofurca without spinula and metathoracic endofurca with long curved paired arms extending to mesothorax. Mesonotum with sculpture converging posteriorly in midline, forming a complete division in posterior 4/5. Metanotum with reticulate median area forming a triangle, paired campaniform sensilla present; one pair of long setae arising medially. Tarsi 1-segmented. Fore wing with first and second setal rows incomplete; veinal setae stout and dark, about 0.5 times as long as fore wing median width. Abdominal tergites II–X bearing reticulate sculpture; II–VIII with one pair of small and wide apart median setae; II with a group of recurved and stout microtrichia anterolaterally; X slightly elongate with complete longitudinal division, usually asymmetric; segment X tubular, not constricted basally. Sternites reticulate and with three pairs of small posteromarginal setae. Female macropterae.
Male unknown.
Intraspecific variation
Not recorded.
Genus and similar species information
Hoodothrips is a Neotropical genus closely related to the Old World genus Astrothrips. Comprises three species that have strongly fusiform setae on fore wings and a group of stout and recurved microtrichia on abdominal tergite II. Hoodothrips brevipilus is very similar to H. constrictus, but it is distinctive in having mesonotum sharply divided longitudinally along mid-line, antennal segment V with a partial suture and shorter veinal setae on fore wings.
World distribution
Described from Trinidad, it is also recorded from Brazil, Costa Rica and Panama.
