Click here to view those suppliers . Wings when present 4 in number, long and narrow, with few or no veins and fringed with long hairs. Mouth parts sucking, asymmetrical, in form of a conical beak at base of head on ventral side. Metamorphosis intermediate between simple and complex. Photo at left depicts an adult common thrip with nymph.
Most thrips are plant feeders, and many are abundant on vegetation or in flowers.
A few are predaceous on other small arthropods, and many feed on fungus spores. A few act as vectors of plant diseases. Insect attacking nematodes are also being investigated as possible biological controls. Photo at left depicts a close-up view of an adult cuban laurel thrip. The cuban laurel trip is an important pest of the Ficus Nitida .