Gynaikothrips uzeli (Thysanoptera: Phlaeothripidae), new record from Tartous, Syria.

The weeping fig thrips Gynaikothrips uzeli Zimmermann (Thysanoptera: Phlaeothripidae) is newly recorded for the first time in the leaf galls of the weeping fig tree Ficus benjamina L. (Rosales: Moraceae) in the coastal area of Tartous, Syria. The thrips caused purplish red spots on the leaf surface of the host plant and the leaves curl. G. uzeili appears to be successfully adapted to this area.

The genus Gynaikothrips sp. ( Cavalleri et al. 2011 ) comprises 41 species mainly from Southeast Asia ( Mound 2012 ). The weeping fig thrips Gynaikothrips uzeli Zimmermann (Thysanoptera, Phlaeothripidae) is almost exclusively associated with decorative Ficus benjamina L. (Rosales: Moraceae) ( Cambero-Campos et al. 2010 ). G. uzeli attacks the leaves of F. benjamina causing purplish red spots on the low leaf surface, and the leaves become curled and galled ( Held et al. 2005 ). G. uzeili has been recorded in China ( Yu et al. 2012 ), Australia ( Tree 2012 ), North America, South America, Central America and Mexico ( Held et al. 2005 ; Cambero-Campos et al. 2010 ; Cavalleri et al. 2011 ; De Borbón and Agostini 2011 ), the Galapagos Islands ( Hoddle and Mound 2011 ), and Hawaii ( Held et al. 2008 ). F.benjamina L. (Rosales: Moraceae) was introduced to Syria and used at the coastal area in Tartous Syria for ornamentation of parks. In summer 2013, it was observed that the leaves of trees of F. benjamina were curled and folded along the central vein, and a high density of black thrips was found inside the curled leaves. The aim of this report is to record the new species of this thrips for the first time in the coastal area of Syria.

Materials and Methods

Infested curled leaves of F. benjamina including thrips species were collected in August 2013, and the samples were taken from two locations in Tartous area, Al Jemaseh Center 34N 43' 55.20, 35 E 58' 38.14 and the Wadi Al-Shater valley 34 N 51' 50.60, 35 E 53' 46.88. The thrips were removed using a fine brush and preserved in 95% alcohol. Specimens are deposited at the Laboratory of Entomology in the Center of Tartous for Agricultural Research. The thrips were identified by L. A. Mound.

Results

These species were identified as G. uzeli according to morphological characters. The species is described by Mound (2012) as follows: the color of the body brown, antennal segments III–VII largely yellow, also tarsi and apices of tibiae yellow, and fore wings pale. The head longer than wide, the antenna is eight segmented, segment III with one sensorious, and segment IV with three sensorious. Pronotum with major setae variable; fore wing parallel sided, with about 15 duplicated cilia. Pelta broadly triangular; tergites II–VII with two pairs of sigmoid wing-retaining setae; tergite IX setae S1 about 0.8 as long as tube.

Discussion

The thrips G. uzeli is native to Southeast Asia including Taiwan, China, and India ( Mound et al. 1995 , Held et al. 2005 ), However, there are no reports about occurrence of this species in Western Asia; therefore, this report is the first record of G. uzeli in this area, and the introduction of G.uzeli in the coastal area in Syria can be attributed to the horticultural trade in F. benjamina .

These results indicated that, the curled leaves, galls, and purplish red spots on the low surface of the leaves of F. benjamina in Tartous area were caused by G. uzeli, and the same symptoms were described by Mound et al. (1995) who also reported that, G. uzeli is the main builder of galls in F. benjamina . These thrips appears to be wide spread in all cultivated places of F. benjamina in Tartous, and it is expected to become a pest, therefore more studies are needed about the biology, ecology, and the natural enemies including predators and parasitoids of G. uzeli in Syria.