Body bicoloured, legs yellow but pterothorax and abdominal tergites I–VIII with a median brown area, tergites IX–X uniformly brown; antennal segment I pale, II–III shaded, IV–VII largely brown; fore wings pale to shaded, with dark setae. Head with two pairs of ocellar setae; ocellar setae III short and arising close to fore ocellus. Antennae 7-segmented, III & IV with forked sense cones; VI ‘bullet-shaped’. Pronotum rectangular and with two pairs of moderately long posteroangular setae; anteroangular and anteromarginal setae minute. Mesothoracic spinula long; metathoracic spinula absent. Metanotum reticulated; paired campaniform sensilla present; two pairs of long and stout setae, median pair arising behind anterior margin. Tarsi 2-segmented. Fore wing with first and second row of setae essentially complete and closely spaced, first row of setae with a small median gap. Abdominal tergite II with four lateral marginal setae, the two anterior setae equal in length; V–VIII with ctenidia laterally, ctenidia on VIII posteromesad to spiracles; VIII with a posteromarginal comb incomplete medially but few microtrichia present laterally; pleurotergites without rows of fine microtrichia and commonly with more than five discal setae. Sternites with many discal setae, three on sternite II but about 30 on sternite VII. Both sexes fully winged.
Male paler, usually without brown markings and with transverse pore plates on abdominal sternites III–VII.
Intraspecific variation
Colour and length variable, from large brown to small yellow individuals.
Genus and similar species information
Thrips is the largest genus amongst Terebrantia, comprising more than 280 described species. This group is primarily from Holartic and Old World tropics, with all members lacking ocellar setae I and with ctenidia on abdominal tergite VIII posteromesad to spiracles. Thrips australis is remarkable in having bicoloured body, fore wings with both rows of setae essentially complete, and posteromarginal comb on abdominal tergite VIII incomplete. A key to four Thrips species reported to Brazil is given by Monteiro et al. (2001).
World distribution
Originated from Australia, it is now widely distributed around the world.
Breeding on flowers, particularly in Myrtaceae trees. In Brazil is frequently found in Eucalyptus flowers.
Economic importance
Not recorded.
References suggested
Nakahara S (1994) The genus Thrips Linnaeus (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) of the New World. Technical Bulletin. United States Department of Agriculture 1822: 1–183.
Mound LA & Masumoto M (2005) The genus Thrips (Thysanoptera, Thripidae) in Australia, New Caledonia And New Zealand. Zootaxa 1020: 1–64.
Monteiro RC; Mound LA & Zucchi RA (2001) Espécies de Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) no Brasil. Neotropical Entomology 30(1): 61–63.
Published in: 17/06/2017 Posted by: Mariana Lindner
