Gyrtothripa pusilla Moore

Gyrtona pusilla Moore, 1888, Descr. new Indian lepid. Insects Colln W.S. Atkinson: 289.

Diagnosis

See the next species, which is slightly smaller but has very similar facies.

Taxonomic Notes

A species with similar facies occurs in Africa (slide 17147) but has a shorter tuft of much finer and evenly curved setae at the angle on the ventral margin of the valve.

Geographical range

Indo-Australian tropics to Queensland and Solomons.

Habitat preference

Bornean records are infrequent, many from a coastal area with mangrove and an area of dry heath forest in the lowlands of Brunei, but also there are records from forest on limestone at 250m and 900m and dipterocarp forest at 150m.

Biology

Host records (Robinson et al., 2001) for this or the next species are from Mesua (Guttiferae) and Melaleuca (Myrtaceae) foliage, and from Heritiera (Sterculiaceae) flowers.

Genitalia: