Fungus-feeding thrips of the genus Stephanothrips in Australia (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripinae)
Author
Mound, Laurence A.
Author
Tree, Desley J.
text
Zootaxa
2018
2018-06-29
4442
1
181
186
journal article
29805
10.11646/zootaxa.4442.1.11
da0ef803-9cde-45c3-8bab-c2a3da016983
1175-5326
1301436
060CE2B2-9A55-46BF-AD37-B7BA28D9F698
Stephanothrips
Trybom
Stephanothrips
Trybom, 1912
: 42
. Type species
S. buffai
Trybom
by monotypy.
With the two new species described below, 32 are now listed in this genus (ThripsWiki
2018
). Of these species, five are from North America, two from southern Africa, four from
Australia
, and the others from Asia. Females of
S. occidentalis
are found widely in tropical and sub-tropical countries, but since males have been found only in southern
Thailand
(
Okajima & Urushihara 1995
) this species probably originated in tropical Asia. Until the description below of
howei
sp.n
.
, only three species in this genus,
occidentalis
,
thai
and
zonatus
, have been known as bearing a prominent hamus on the external margin of the fore tarsi, although this structure occurs in species of some other urothripine genera. Currently
Stephanothrips
is identified using the generic key provided by
Mound (1972)
. However, the increasing number of species described in the genus since that date, also the increased number of species in both
Baenothrips
and
Bradythrips
, will necessitate a re-evaluation of this generic classification. Currently these genera are distinguished only on the degree of fusion of antennal segments three, four and five, and the number of setae on the anterior margin of the head, and both characters seem susceptible to variation.