Thrips (the term is both singular and plural) are tiny (usually less than 1 mm) Insects related to Lice and True Bugs. They have wings, but are poor flyers, and feed by sucking fluids from plant or animal hosts. Thrips do not undergo metamorphosis, the young are essentially smaller, non-reproducing versions of the adults. Due to their small size and ubiquitous nature, it is probable that Thrips are one of the larger Insect groups, though they are relatively understudied, with little work carried out on Thrips that do not have agricultural significance.
In a paper published in the journal Zootaxa on 20 September 2013, Li-Hong Dang of the Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution at the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Laurence Mound of CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences and Ge-Xia Qiao, also of the Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, describe four new species of Thrips in the genus Adraneothrips from China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia, as part of a wider study into the Thrips of this genus in Asia and Australasia.
The first new species described is named Adraneothrips darwini, presumably after the Australian city, though no explanation is given for this name. Adraneothrips darwini is a 1740 μm light brown Thrips described from nine female and two male specimens collected from dead twigs and grass at Lichfield in Darwin, Australia.
Adraneothrips darwini. Dang et al. (2013).
The approximate location of the site where Adraneothrips darwini was discovered. Google Maps.
The second new species described is named Adraneothrips hani, in honour of Han Yun-Fa, an expert on Chinese Thrips. Adraneothrips hani is a 2040 μm yellow and brown Thrips described from two female and two male specimens collected from dead leaves on Nanjen Mountain in southern Taiwan.
Adraneothrips hani. Dang et al. (2013).
The approximate location of the site where Adraneothrips hani was first discovered. Google Maps.
The third new species described is named Adraneothrips waui, possibly after the town of Wau in Papua New Guinea, though again no explanation is provided. Adraneothrips waui is a 1150 μm brown Thrips described from seven female and two male specimens collected on branchlets of the Hoop Pine (Araucaria cunninghamii) alongside the Scolytid Beetle Hylurdrectonus araucariae, a serious pest of the Hoop Pine, as well as on Beetle droppings (frass), at Bulolo in Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea (about 32 km northwest of Wau).
Adraneothrips waui. Dang et al. (2013).
The approximate location of the site where Adraneothrips waui was discovered. Google Maps.
The final new species described is named Adraneothrips yunnanensis, meaning 'from Yunnan', presumably in reference to Yunnan Province, China, though again no explanation is given. Adraneothrips yunnanensis is a 1725 μm yellow and brown Thrips described from two female specimens collected from dead branches in Jinghong County in Yunnan Province, China, and two specimens collected from leaf litter in Bogor Botanic Gardens on Java in Indonesia.
Adraneothrips yunnanensis. Dang et al. (2013).
The approximate locations of the two sites where Adraneothrips yunnanensis was found. Google Maps.
See also A new species of Cicada from Meghalaya State in northeast India, A new species of Thrips from Chiapas State, Mexico, Three new species of Ant-mimicking Mirid Bugs from central Thailand, New species of Leafhopper from Laos, southeast Asia and A new species of Leaf Bug from the Mangrove Forests of Singapore and Thailand.
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