
Belongs within: Thripidae.
Chirothrips is a cosmopolitan genus of thrips whose members are all found living in grass flowers. Each individual thrips develops within a single floret on the grass’s flower-stalk, and individuals within a species may vary in size depending on the nutritional quality of the host floret (Mound & Marullo 1996).
Characters (from Mound & Marullo 1996): Pronotum trapezoidal, posterior margin at least 1.5 times as wide as anterior margin; sense cones on antennal segments III–IV simple, not forked; antennal segment II usually strongly asymmetric, external margin often produced into a point; mesofurca well-developed, T-shaped, invaginated medially and with paired lateral flanges or, if mesofurca reduced, then metanotum and ventral surface of head with numerous short stout setae.
<==Chirothrips Haliday 1836MM96 [=Chirtothrips (l. c.)G28] |--*C. manicatus (Haliday 1836) [=Thrips (*Chirothrips) manicata]MM96 |--C. ah Girault 1929G29 |--C. atricorpus Girault 1927G27 |--C. dorsalisMM96 |--C. falsus Priesner 1925MM96 |--C. frontalisMM96 |--C. hamatusRD77 |--C. orizaba Hood 1938MM96 |--C. pallidicornisM83 |--C. patruelisMM96 |--C. priesneri Hood 1949MM96 |--C. productusMM96 |--C. pubescens Hood 1949MM96 |--C. ruthaeMM96 |--C. sericatus Hood 1949MM96 |--C. simplexMM96 |--C. spinosus Moulton 1946MM96 |--C. texanusMM96 `--C. vestisMM96
*Type species of generic name indicated
References
[G27] Girault, A. A. 1927. Thysanoptera nova Australiensis from Queensland. Privately published (reprinted: Gordh, G., A. S. Menke, E. C. Dahms & J. C. Hall. 1979. The privately printed papers of A. A. Girault. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 28: 213).
[G28] Girault, A. A. 1928. Some Insecta and a new All Highness. Privately published (reprinted: Gordh, G., A. S. Menke, E. C. Dahms & J. C. Hall. 1979. The privately printed papers of A. A. Girault. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 28: 225-228).
[G29] Girault, A. A. 1929. New pests from Australia. VI. Privately published (reprinted: Gordh, G., A. S. Menke, E. C. Dahms & J. C. Hall. 1979. The privately printed papers of A. A. Girault. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 28: 266–269).
[M83] Martin, N. A. 1983. Miscellaneous observations on a pasture fauna: an annotated species list. DSIR Entomology Division Report 3: 1–98.
[MM96] Mound, L. A., & R. Marullo. 1996. The thrips of Central and South America: an introduction (Insecta: Thysanoptera). Memoirs on Entomology, International 6: 1–487.
[RD77] Richards, O. W., & R. G. Davies. 1977. Imms’ General Textbook of Entomology 10th ed. vol. 2. Classification and Biology. Chapman and Hall: London.