Psalidothrips tritus Wang & Mound & Tree 2019, sp.n.
Creators: name: Wang, Jun
name: Mound, Laurence A.
name: Tree, Desley J.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Thysanoptera
Phlaeothripidae
Psalidothrips
Psalidothrips tritus

description: Psalidothrips tritus sp.n.
(Figs 13, 14, 30, 40)
Female aptera. Body, legs and antennae brownish yellow, abdomen darkest, pronotum usually paler than head. Head without sculpture; postocular setae long and almost acute; ocelli absent; compound eyes with 2 large and 1–4 small facets; internal postocular apodeme unusually strong; maxillary stylets about two-thirds of head width apart, retracted about half way to postocular setae (Fig. 13). Antennal segments III–IV each with two sense cones, IV–VIII each with distinct pedicel. Pronotum without sculpture, setae aa and am usually minute but occasionally one or both aa longer; ml, epim and pa bluntly pointed to weakly capitate. Mesopresternum eroded to small irregular sclerites; anterior border of mesoeusternum not eroded. Mesonotum with weak sculpture, metanotum without sculpture. Fore tarsal tooth absent. Pelta broad across tergite II with weak sculpture at anterior (Fig. 40); tergites II–VII each with minute, straight wing-retaining setae, median setae scarcely 10 microns long; tergite IX setae S1 acute, S2 bluntly pointed; sternites with about 4 pairs of discal setae.
Measurements (holotype female in microns). Body length 1900. Head, length 180; width 175; postocular setae 75, distance between their bases 141; postocellar setae 7, distance between their bases 68. Pronotum, length 150; median width 240; major setae am 6, aa 15 (6 to 25 in paratypes), ml 50, epim 45, pa 75. Tergite IV median marginal setae 73; tergite VIII median setae 44, tergite IX setae S1 105; S2 105. Tube length 120; anal setae 116. Antennal segments III–VIII length 54, 42, 48, 48, 40, 40.
Female macroptera. Bicoloured; head and pterothorax brown, pronotum and antennae brownish yellow, abdomen slightly paler; legs yellow; fore wing shaded. Head with stout postocular apodeme; genae sharply incut behind angulate compound eyes, 2 posterolateral facets unusually large (Fig. 14). Mesonotum weakly sculptured, metanotum without sculpture medially. Mesopresternum almost complete. Fore wing with about four small sub-basal setae. Pelta broad, with lateral lobes; tergites III–VII with one pair of sigmoid wing-retaining setae.
Measurements (paratype female from Mt Cambewarra in microns). Body length 1800. Head, length 190; width 145; postocular setae 90. Pronotum, length 150; median width 240; major setae am 6, aa?, ml 55, epim 45, pa 75. Fore wing, length 800; distal width 60; longest sub-basal seta 25. Tergite IX setae S1 105; S2 105. Antennal segments III–VIII length 54, 48, 48, 50, 38, 45.
Male aptera.Colour and structure similar to female aptera; large male with fore femora enlarged, fore tarsal tooth about 0.8 of tarsal width; small male with slender fore femora, fore tarsal tooth less than 0.3 of tarsal width or inner margin of tarsus flattened with a small forwardly directed tooth; sternite VIII with pore plate transverse (interrupted medially in one male), usually not extending fully to sternite margins (Fig. 30); tergite IX setae S2 as long as but stouter than S1.
Measurements (largest and smallest male paratypes collected with holotype). Body length 1500 (1300). Head length 155 (125). Fore tarsal width including tooth 55 (35). Tergite IX setae S1 75 (70); S2 75 (70); S3 90 (90). Tube length 105 (90). Antennal segment III length 48 (45).
Specimens studied. Holotype female aptera, Queensland, 30 mls south east of Gayndah, in Eucalyptus leaf litter, 17.viii.1968 (LAM 798), in ANIC.
Paratypes, apterae except where noted: Queensland; 9 females, 7 males collected with holotype; Kuranda, Black Mt Road, 3 females 1 male in rain forest litter, 30.x.1969; Sunnybank, 1 female macroptera in water trap, 28.i.1966; Ormiston, 1 female macroptera in water trap, 20.iv.1966; Indooroopilly, 8 females, 5 males in leaf litter, 13–15.x.1985; Mt Cootha, 2 females in leaf litter, 14.x.1985, 1 female from dead branch, 29.x.2007, 2 females in dry sclerophyll litter, 12.vii.2008; Cooloola, 1 female macroptera, 1 male in litter, 29.iii.1977; Brisbane Forest Park, 2 female macropterae, 8 females, 6 males in Eucalyptus litter, various dates viii.2008 – iii.2009; Mt. Glorious, 2 females, 2 males, in litter, vii.2008 – ix.2009; Mt Nebo, 3 females, 1 male in wet sclerophyll litter, 12.vii.2008; Brisbane, Gap Creek, 2 female macropterae, 3 females, 2 males in dry sclerophyll litter, vii.2008 – xii.2008; Lamington N.P., 2 female macropterae, 2 females, 3 males, x.2006 – iii.2007. New South Wales: Coffs Harbour, 1 female, 1 male in rain forest, 14.v.1969; Clyde Mt., 5 females, 1 male in leaf litter, 4.xii.1967; Cambewarra Mt, 1 female macroptera, 1 female in rain forest litter, 13.iv.1968; Monga State Forest, 1 female macroptera in rain forest litter, 27.ii.1968. Australian Capital Territory, Black Mt., 6 female macropterae, 8 females, 7 males from leaf litter, on various dates, xi.1967, iv.2001, xi.2002, x–xi.2011, iv.2016. Victoria, Mt Dandenong, 1 male from log, 11.i.1981. Tasmania, Peters Link Road, 2 female macropterae, 5 females, 1 male in dry sclerophyll litter, ii–viii.1993; Salmon River Forestry Area, 1 female macroptera, 4 females, iii–xi.1974; Trenah, 1 female macroptera, 2.vii.1974.
Comments. This species is widespread in eastern Australia, although in contrast to taylori it has been collected mainly in areas of higher rainfall. The most obvious structural characteristic of tritus is the stout postocular apodeme, also the male pore plate that usually does not quite extend to the sternite lateral margins. However, as in taylori, the species is by no means constant in appearance. For example, the apterous paratypes from near Kuranda are large, with tergal sculpture typical of macropterae, whereas the apterae collected with the holotype are all small and unsculptured. The two female paratypes from Mt. Cooth-tha have one or both pronotal aa setae longer than normal.
description: Published as part of Wang, Jun, Mound, Laurence A. & Tree, Desley J., 2019, Leaf-litter thrips of the genus Psalidothrips (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae) from Australia, with fifteen new species, pp. 53-73 in Zootaxa 4686 (1) on pages 65-66, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4686.1.2, http://zenodo.org/record/3484342