Thrips roepkei

Nomenclatural details

Thrips roepkei Doeksen, 1953: 169.
Thrips inopinatus zur Strassen, 1963: 523. Synonym for T. roepkei (Vierbergen, 2004).
[Thrips fallaciosus Nakahara, 1994: 51. Synonym for T. roepkei (Vierbergen, 2004). Note: T. fallaciosus is considered here as a separate species*]

Biology and distribution

Described from The Netherlands (T. roepkei), Frankfurt am Main, Germany from Solanum dulcamara (T. inopinatus) [and New York, USA from terminal leaves of Salix sp. (T. fallacious)*].

Distribution: Reported from Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Czech Republic and Great Britain (without Schottland).
(*Assuming that the synonymy of T. fallaciosus is correct, this species would also be widespread in North America (from Alaska to Colorado). *Thrips fallaciosus is quite common in the northern areas of the USA and Canada.)
Thrips roepkei is found (monophagously?) on Solanum dulcamara. The former report from Solanum nigrum as a host plant seems to be the result of a misidentification of the plant (Vierbergen, 2004).
*Thrips fallaciosus, on the contrary, was recorded from many plant sspecies (such as Acer, Angelica, Betula, Brassica, Epilobium, Fraxinus, Gladiolus, Lysimachia, Pinus, Populus, Prunus, Rorippa, Ranunculus, Rumex, Salix, Sisymbrium, Solanum and Spiraea as well as from a not identified Asteraceae).
Note: The synonymy of T. fallaciosus with T. roepkei is not supported here. Further studies – also on larvae – will be necessary to show the taxonomic status. While females of both species are quite similar, males show differences in colouration as well as in the chaetotaxy at tergite IX (Ulitzka unpublished).

References

Doeksen J. (1953) Thrips roepkei nov. spec. Tijdschrift over Plantenziekten 59: 169.

zur Strassen R (1963) Thrips inopinatus n.sp. aus Deutschland (Ins., Thysanoptera, Thripidae). Senckenbergiana biologica 44: 523–527.

Nakahara S (1994) The genus Thrips Linnaeus (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) of the New World. United States Department of Agriculture. Technical Bulletin 1822: 1–183.

Vierbergen G (2004) Eight species of thrips new for The Netherlands and some taxonomical changes in Stenchaetothrips, Thrips and Hoplothrips (Thysanoptera). Acta Phytopathologica et Entomologica Hungarica 39: 199–209.

Hoddle HS, Mound LA & Paris D (2012) Thrips of California 2012. LINK

Type information

Holotype ♀ (T. inopinatus): Senckenberg Museum, Frankfurt.

Holotype ♀ (T. roepkei): Plant Protection Service, Wageningen.

[Holotype ♀ (T. fallacious): United States National Museum; Paratypes ♂ & ♀: Senckenberg Museum, Frankfurt.]