Ethirothrips puiensis sp. n.

(Figs 110–114, 229)

Female (macroptera). Distended body length: 4.4–4.7mm. Colour dark brown. Antennal segment III yellow, with apical 1/4 shaded with brown. Fore tarsi yellowish. Fore wings pale, very weakly shaded with brown, without dark streak. Prominent setae including cheek setae yellowish. Head (Fig. 110) elongate, broadest just behind eyes, about 1.6 times as long as broad; dorsal surface sculptured laterally and basally with transverse row of weak reticulation. Cheeks swollen behind eyes, weakly convex at middle; cheek setae minute, postocular cheek setae 30–40μm in holotype. Postocular setae elongate, about half the length of head, pointed, situated behind eyes; postocellar setae elongate, usually longer than half the length of postoculars, situated behind posterior ocelli; a pair of mid-vertex setae more or less developed, 52–60μm in holotype. Eyes about 1/4 as long as head; posterior ocelli close to eyes, 25–30μm in diameter, about 78μm apart from each other in holotype. Antennae (Fig. 111) about 1.6 times as long as head; segment VIII weakly constricted at base, about 3/4 as long as VII; segment III longer than IV, about 3.0 times as long as broad; sense-cones short, segment IV with four sense-cones. Maxillary stylets retracted to postocular setae, sub-parallel, less than 1/3 of head width apart at middle of head. Pronotum (Fig. 110) much shorter than half the length of head, 0.42 times as long as head in holotype; dorsal surface almost smooth, weakly sculptured with reticulation posteriorly. Prominent setae blunt or nearly pointed, am longer than 50μm, pa the longest, almost as long as pronotum or a little longer. Mesopresternum relatively narrow, boat shaped. Metanotum (Fig. 113) without CPS. Fore femora moderately enlarge, dorso-external setae shorter than 50μm; fore tarsus (Fig. 114) with a wide-based tooth. Fore wings each with 25–27 duplicated cilia in holotype; three sub-basal setae blunt, at least not sharply pointed. Pelta (Fig. 113) with lateral wings. Abdominal tergite II distinctly eroded laterally at anterior 3/4. Posteromarginal setae on abdominal tergite IX sharply pointed, shorter than tube, S1 and S2 subequal in length. Tube (Fig. 112) longer than head, about 1.24 times as long as head, 3.64 times as long as broad in holotype, almost straight sided, evenly narrowed to apex, but weakly constricted at apex.

Measurements (holotype female in μm). Body length about 4650 (distended). Head length 475, from anterior margin of eyes 450, width 297; eyes length 117, width 84; postocular setae 235–250; postocellars 138–150.Antenna total length 765, segments I–VIII length (width) as follows: 70 (59), 87 (48), 142 (47), 130 (48), 115 (45), 92 (40), 65 (30), 50 (18). Pronotum length 200, width 436. Setae on prothorax: am 64–75, aa 55–66, ml 125–128, pa 200– 225, epim 180–190, cox 70. Fore wing length 1930. Sub-basal wing setae: S1 80–95, S2 130, S3 160–175. Setae on tergite IX: S1 500–510, S2 510–520. Tube length 590, maximum width 162; terminal setae 300–310.

Male. Unknown.

Type series. Holotype: macropterous female, Thailand, nr. Chiang Mai, foot of Doi Pui, on dead leaves and branches, 24.viii.1992, TN & SO . Paratypes: Thailand, Doi Pui, 2 females, data similar to holotype, 1.ix.1992, TN .

Remarks. By the elongate cephalic and pronotal setae, longer head and tube, and number of fore wing duplicated cilia, E. puiensis is somewhat similar to E. longisetis from India. Although, however, longisetis has antennal segment III dark (Fig. 80), postocular setae situated behind inner margins of eyes, V-shaped maxillary stylets and minute postocellar setae, puiensis has antennal segment III yellow (Fig. 111), postocular setae situated behind eyes, sub-parallel maxillary stylets (Fig. 110) and elongate postocellar setae. Moreover, antennal segment III is longer in longisetis, about 3.4 times as long as broad, whereas it is shorter in puiensis, about 3.0 times as long as broad. This species is also similar to obscurus in having long postocellar setae, but it can be distinguished easily by the larger body, dark antennal segment IV and longer tube.