1903] FA'AA-KL/X: — XOTES ON ACAXTHOTHR/PS 221 



NOTES ON ACANTHOTHRIPS. 



BY H. J. FRANKLIN, B. S., AMHERST, MASS. 



On the 9th of September, 1903, tive females and one male Acanthothrips 

 magnafemoralis Hinds, were found under the loose bark of a sycamore tree near 

 the college grounds. Since then, a large number of specimens have been found on 

 the same tree. While I have not found them on other sycamores in the neighbor- 

 hood, their numbers on this tree would seem to indicate that the sycamore is their 

 food plant. It is possible, however, that they fed, during the summer, on plants 

 near this tree and that they were simply preparing to hibernate under its bark. 



Acanthothrips magnafemo?-aIis was originally reported from Miami, Florida. 

 Dr. Hinds gave a very good description of the male of this species from a single 

 specimen and, since that time, no further account of the insect seems to have 

 appeared and no description of the female has been published. 



Female. — The female, although generalh' larger, more robust, and with a more swollen 

 abdomen, closely resembles the male in most respects. 



Length 2.28 mm. (2.1 to 2.7 mm.); width of mesothoi-ax 0.49 mm. (0.47 to 0.52 mm.). 

 Relative lengths of the segments of the antennae as follows : 



Number of segment, 123456 7 8 



Spaces of micrometer, 12.3 18.4 37 34 29.6 18.4 18.2 10.5 

 Described from nine specimens. 



Two cotypes (two slides) have been deposited in the United States national 

 museum. Three cotypes (two slides) have been deposited at the Massachusetts 

 agricultural college. I have retained four cotypes (one slide). 



The color of the male and female both is more or less tinged with red, as 

 seen by transmitted light, owing to the presence of scattered hypodermal pigmenta- 

 tion. Fore femora strongly compressed ; two apical segments of the antennae of 

 both sexes with a straight, longitudinal row of about ten setae seen on the outer 

 side of the segments above, when the antennae are anteriorly directed, beginning at 

 the apex of the last segment; surface of the abdominal segments reticulated. 



The description of this insect by reflected light is, in many respects, quite dif- 

 ferent from that by transmitted light. 



By reflected light, the general color of the body above is seen to l)e light gray- 

 ish tinged with red ; the eyes and ocelli are brick-red in color; the last two segments 

 of the abdomen before the tube are pale yellow and the outer two thirds of the tube 

 is black. There is a dark brown, longitudinal, median basal stripe on the head 

 above and the fore femora usually bear one or two isolated brown dots. A broad, 



