Thrips (Thysanoptera) in the Meadows of Kaliningrad Province

Abstract

The insect order Thysanoptera is one of the less known in Kaliningrad Province. In the course of investigations, plants were collected in May–September of 2013–2016 in the motley-grass communities from 22 localities in different landscape regions of Kaliningrad Province. From the plants in the laboratory a total of 1362 adults of 29 thrips species from three families of two suborders were collected. Thirteen species are recorded from Kaliningrad Province for the first time: Dendrothrips saltatrix, Mycterothrips consociatus, Odontothrips loti, O. meliloti, O. confusus, Platythrips tunicatus, Sericothrips bicornis, Thrips brevicornis, Th. nigropilosus, Th. pillichi, Th. trehernei, Haplothrips niger, and H. leucanthemi. Most of the species revealed are hortobionts, except for Mycterothrips consociatus and Dendrothrips saltatrix which live on deciduous trees. All the species are known from Poland; M. consociatus, O. meliloti, and Th. pillichi are not known from Lithuania. The largest numbers of the species are associated with the plant families Fabaceae, Asteraceae, and Apiaceae; the most widely distributed in Kaliningrad Province are Thrips major, Th. tabaci, Th. fuscipennis, and Frankliniella intonsa.