LETTER TO THE EDITOR

 

 

CORRECTION OF CERATOTHRIPOIDES CLARATRIS REPORTS TO CERATOTHRIPOIDES BRUNNEUS (THYSANOPTERA: THRIPIDAE) IN CUBA

 

CORRECCIÓN DE REPORTES DE Ceratothripoides claratris PARA Ceratothripoides brunneus (Thysanoptera: thripidae) EN CUBA

 

Dear Sir.

Gently, Dr. Laurence Mound sent us his paper «The Old-World genus Ceratothripoides (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) with a new genus for related New-World species» published in the magazine Zootaxa 2230: 57 63, on 14 Sept. 2009, with the suggestion that the species previously reported by us as Ceratothripoides claratris Bagnall (Rev. Protección Veg. Vol. 24 no. 1 of 2009) had to correspond with Ceratothripoides brunneus Bagnall, for the coloration observed in the forewings.

For the identification of this species as C. claratris, we took into account, among others features, the description offered in the Thrips of California¹ indicating that it has pale but weakly shaded forewings, and assumed that the species found in Cuba could display this coloration.

In Dr, Mound's paper, the key of the species belonging to this genus appears for the first time, and, among the characteristics, it emphasizes: Forewings brown or deeply shaded, with 6 or 7 marginal setae but no discal seta in the clavus, the absence of colored eyes facets, mesonotum and metanotum with no campaniform sensilla, metafurcal spinula absent, tergite VIII campaniform sensilla usually anterior to median pairs of setae; thus, it is accepted to correct the report of C. claratris to C. brunneus .

This specie is close to C. revelatus (Priesner), from which it differs by presenting the forewing clavus with 6 or 7 marginal setae and one discal seta, a pair of campaniform sensilla in mesonotum and metanotum and tergite VIII with campaniform sensilla posterior to median pairs of setae.

This species is a new report for Cuba being found recently outside of Africa. Two specimens have also been examined from Puerto Rico.

 

 

Moraima Suris*, A. Rodríguez-Romero**

 

 

* Grupo Plagas Agrícolas, Dirección de Protección de Plantas, Centro Nacional de Sanidad Agropecuaria (CENSA), Apartado 10, San José de las Lajas, Mayabeque, Cuba. Correo electrónico: [e-mail]. **Centro Universitario de Guantánamo (CUG), Facultad Agroforestal de Montaña (FAM), El Salvador, Guantánamo, Cuba. Correo electrónico: [e-mail]

¹ Hoddle, M.S., Mound, L.A. & Paris, D. (2009) Thrips of California.
http://www.lucidcentral.org/keys/v3/thrips_of_california/Thrips_of_California.html.