Recognition data

Distinguishing features

Female macroptera. Body, legs and antennae light brown to brown; fore wings uniformly pale brown. Antennae 9-segmented, segment I with long toothed process; sensoria on III–IV small and incomplete; IX slightly longer than VIII. Head with ocellar setae III long, arising just within ocellar triangle. Pronotum with many microtrichia, with 10 pairs of discal setae, anteromedian pair longest; posterior angles with 2 pairs of long setae. Mesonotum with moderately long lateral setae, no microtrichia on anterior sculpture lines. Metanotum with concentric lines at anterior bearing microtrichia. Fore wing setae about as long as distance between veins. Fore tibial apex with one stout and one weaker ventro-lateral setae. Abdominal tergites I–VIII with weak sculpture lines medially, many microtrichia laterally; tergite VIII median marginal setae about as long as tergite; dorsal setae on IX–X slender. Sternite II with 2 pairs of posteromarginal setae, III–VI with 4 pairs; median sternites with about 12 discal setae, sternite VII with discal setae laterally but not medially.

Male smaller than female, tergite I with pair of longitudinal ridges; sternal setae long and dark.

Related and similar species

Twelve species are currently described in the genus Cranothrips, 11 from Australia and one from South Africa (Pereyra & Mound, 2009). C. emersoni is particularly similar to C. ravidus, but is much smaller with the pronotal anteromarginal setae shorter.

Distribution data

South East Queensland

Biological data

Host plants

Thriptomene sp. (Myrtaceae)

Life history

Breeding in the flowers of its host, and presumably pupating at soil level.

Taxonomic data

Current valid name

Cranothrips emersoni Girault

Original name and synonyms

• Cranothrips emersoni Girault, 1929