Scirtothrips dorsalis

Definition

A highly invasive pest thrips (order Thysanoptera, family Thripidae) native to South Asia that has expanded globally over the past two decades, causing significant economic damage to diverse crops including pepper, mango, citrus, strawberry, cotton, tea, and roses. Adults and larvae feed preferentially on new growth, producing characteristic wrinkled leaves with brown scarring along leaf veins, flower buds, and fruit calyces; heavy infestations can kill stressed plants. The species is also a suspected, though controversial, vector of tospoviruses (genus Orthotospovirus).

Etymology

Scirtothrips: from Greek skirtao (to leap, referring to active jumping behavior) + thrips (woodworm, the type genus of Thysanoptera); dorsalis: Latin, of the back, referring to a morphological feature of the original description.

Example

In Florida citrus nurseries, Scirtothrips dorsalis infestations on new flush growth can render plants unmarketable due to severe leaf distortion and bronze scarring, prompting quarantine protocols and systemic insecticide applications.

Synonyms

• Chilli thrips
• yellow tea thrips

Related Terms

• Thysanoptera
• Thripidae
• Invasive species
• tospovirus
• Vector
• Integrated Pest Management
• quarantine pest
• Scirtothrips

Usage Notes

The common name 'chilli thrips' is widely used in agricultural extension literature, though 'yellow tea thrips' appears in older Asian literature. Taxonomic stability is good; the variety padmae (Ramakrishna, 1942) is rarely recognized in modern treatments. Identification requires slide-mounting and examination of chaetotaxy; molecular tools are increasingly used for surveillance. Not to be confused with other Scirtothrips species such as S. citri (citrus thrips) or S. perseae (avocado thrips), which have narrower host ranges and more restricted distributions.