Recognition data

Distinguishing features

Female macroptera. Body and legs brownish yellow, pronotum with brown area medially; antennal segments I–III pale, VI–VIII brown; fore wings pale but very weakly shaded in basal half. Antennae 8-segmented, III–IV with forked sensorium. Head wider than long, slightly depressed in front of ocelli, cheeks shorter than compound eyes; eyes without pigmented facets; ocellar setae III outside triangle, lateral or posterolateral to fore ocellus. Pronotum transverse, with transverse anastomosing striae but no long setae. Mesonotum with paired campaniform sensilla present anteromedially. Metascutum reticulate, campaniform sensilla present; median pair of setae far from anterior margin. Prosternal ferna entire; basantra without setae; mesothoracic sternopleural sutures complete, furca with weak spinula. Fore wing with costal setae short; first vein with 7 setae near base, 1 seta at middle, 2 setae near apex; second vein with about 9 setae; clavus with 5 veinal and 1 discal setae. Tergites II–VIII median setae wide apart, close to campaniform sensilla; tergites VI–VII setae S3 much smaller than S4; tergite I with very narrow craspedum, II–VII with broad craspedum, VIII with fine posteromarginal comb arising from broad craspedum but comb interrupted at middle; tergite IX with two pairs of campaniform sensilla. Sternites without discal setae; II–VI with broad craspedum, VII with craspedum absent medially, all setae in front of posterior margin.

Male macroptera. Similar to female, including comb on tergite VIII; tergite IX with 4 slender setae; sternites III–VII each with a small transverse pore plate.

Related and similar species

P. ascius is the only species placed in Pandorathrips, and it differs from all Anaphothrips species in having tergal craspeda, and in having one discal seta on the fore wing clavus. The form of the posteromarginal comb on the ninth tergite is unique.

Distribution data

General distribution

Known only from Australia.

Australian distribution

New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland.

Biological data

Life history

Feeding on leaves.

Host plants

Pandorea spp. (Bignoniaceae); adults taken from Morinda sp. (Rubiaceae), Cissus antartica (Vitaceae), leaves of Indigofera sp. (Fabaceae), Solanum sp. (Solanaceae) and Livistona humilis(Arecaceae)

Taxonomic data

Current valid name

Pandorathrips ascius Mound & Masumoto

Original name and synonyms

• Pandorathrips ascius Mound & Masumoto, 2009: 72

References

Mound LA & Masumoto M. 2009. Australian Thripinae of the Anaphothrips genus-group (Thysanoptera), with three new genera and thirty-three new species. Zootaxa 2042: 1-76. http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2009/f/zt02042p076.pdf