The oral toxicity of excretion products of several Photorhabdus and Xenorhabdus strains was tested on two thrips species: Frankliniella occidentalis and Thrips tabaci. Out of 46 Photorhabdus isolates and 6 Xenorhabdus isolates only 6 North American P. temperata isolates were toxic to the thrips species. After 7 days of drinking from P. temperata supernatant a mortality of 90% could be reached. ...

Avocado thrips arrived in California in 1996. Since then, we have made substantial progress in our understanding of this pest. We now know the area of origin of the avocado thrips and have compiled an inventory of other potential pest thrips species on avocados in Mexico and Central America. Trials have helped us to identify several selective insecticides for use in treating avocado thrips in o...

Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV), a member of the Tospovirus genus within the Bunyaviridae, is an economically important plant pathogen with a worldwide distribution. TSWV is transmitted to plants via thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), which transmit the virus in a persistent propagative manner. The envelope glycoproteins, G(N) and G(C), are critical for the infection of thrips, but they are not...

Litter-dwelling thrips are an important component of soil macroinvertebrates in tropical and subtropical regions. However, little is known about assemblage composition, seasonal abundance and vertical distribution of litter-dwelling thrips. A survey of forest litter-dwelling thrips and other soil macroinvertebrates was conducted in an urban forest remnant at Guangzhou, China during 2004-2005 an...

Development of a control strategy for thrips attacking nectarine trees depends on an understanding of their phenology, distribution, and life history as related to characteristics of nectarine orchards. To this end, we compared the overwintering behavior, distribution, and abundance of western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), among 11 nectarine orchards located in the dry c...

The reproductive organs of some plants self-heat, release scent, and attract pollinators. The relations among these processes are not well understood, especially in the more ancient, nonflowering gymnosperm lineages. We describe the influence of plant volatiles in an obligate pollination mutualism between an Australian Macrozamia cycad (a gymnosperm with male and female individuals) and its spe...

Populations of onion thrips, Thrips tabaci Lindeman, from commercial onion fields in New York were evaluated for their susceptibility to the commonly used pyrethroid, lambda-cyhalothrin (Warrior T), using a novel system called the Thrips Insecticide Bioassay System (TIBS). To use TIBS, thrips are collected directly from the plant into an insecticide-treated 0.5-ml microcentrifuge tube that has ...

1. Omnivory, where an animal crosses trophic boundaries, is thought to be common in natural and managed communities. Foraging theory predicts that omnivores will balance their diet as a result of nutritional needs, food quality and availability of alternate foods. We investigated diet selection of the western ̄ower thrips [Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande)], a herbivore under some circumstan...

Thrips were sampled from six nectarine orchards in the Dry Central Interior, British Columbia, Canada, between April and June 1993 using yellow sticky cards on posts spaced around the perimeter of each orchard. Although 12 identified species of thrips were captured, >90% of individuals were the western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande). The flight patterns and abundances of w...