Holopothrips brevicapitatum Lindner, Ferrari, Mound & Cavalleri, 2018: 25.

Original reference: Lindner MF; Ferrari A; Mound LA & Cavalleri A (2018) Holopothrips diversity—a Neotropical genus of gall-inducing insects (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae). Zootaxa 4494(1): 001–099.

Family

Phlaeothripidae, Phlaeothripinae

Nomenclatural information

https://thrips.info/wiki/Holopothrips_brevicapitatum

Diagnosis

Body dark brown, with fore tibia brownish yellow and all tarsi yellow; antennomeres I–II concolourous with head, II lighter at a apex, III–IV yellow, IV shaded with brown on apical half, V–VII yellow basally and light brown apically, VIII light brown; fore wings weakly shaded; major body setae yellowish brown. Head about 1.15 times longer than width behind eyes, dorsal surface with transverse lines of sculpture; postocular setae slightly shorter than the length of a compound eye, with blunt apexes; maxillary stylets V-shaped and more than half of head width apart; mouth cone rounded. Antenna 8-segmented, III–IV with 3 elongate sense cones each. Pronotum without sculpture medially, notopleural sutures incomplete and short; 5 pairs of major pronotal setae with blunt to slightly expanded apexes, one pair on epimeral region; anteromarginal pair reduced. Mesonotal sculpture formed by weak transverse lines, sometimes enclosing irregular reticles, without internal markings. Metanotum with 2–3 anterior discal setae and one major median pair; sculpture formed by short longitudinal lines, forming a striate pattern, without internal markings. Fore tarsal hamus elongate, sometimes projecting beyond lateral margin of tarsus. Fore wings with about 6–11 duplicated cilia. Pelta triangular with anterior margin straight, one pair of campaniform sensilla present; sculpture formed by irregular reticles anteromedially and elongate reticles posteriorly, without internal markings. Abdominal tergites with sculpture formed by weak reticles anteriorly, II–VII with three pairs of wing-retaining setae. Both sexes macropterous.

Females have the spermatheca swollen medially. Males are slightly smaller. with pore plates on sternites IV–VIII: two bands on anterior angles and one transverse band, posterior to discal setae, usually interrupted medially on sternites IV–VII.

Intraspecific variation

Not recorded.

Genus and similar species information

Holopothrips is a genus with about 60 known species, distributed almost exclusively in the Neotropics. Several species in this genus are associated to plant galls, as inducers or invaders, in plants of many families. Most Holopothrips species bear three pairs of wing-retaining setae on tergites II–VII, males have complex pore plates and frequently in other sternites besides VIII, and the female spermatheca is visible. About 40 species in this genus have been described or recorded from Brazil. Holopothrips brevicapitatum is the only species in the genus with males bearing pore plates on sternites IV–VIII. Members of this species also have an elongated fore tarsal hamus, but not as thickened as in H. longihamus. 

World distribution

Brazil.

Distribution in Brazil

http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/fauna/faunadobrasil/197491 

Life history

This species induces rolled leaf galls in an unidentified species of the genus Miconia (Melastomataceae).

Economic importance

Not recorded.

References suggested

Lindner MF; Ferrari A; Mound LA & Cavalleri A (2018) Holopothrips diversity—a Neotropical genus of gall-inducing insects (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae). Zootaxa 4494(1): 001–099.