Latin: Thysanoptera — Relevance to Fly Fishing:
Thrips are small insects with fringed wings, feeding on plants and sometimes transmitting plant diseases, causing damage to agricultural crops.
On this map you see where there were observations of Thrips around the world. This will give you an idea of the global distribution of this class. Note that a class can have many different families, and thousands of species.
Years 2000 until now, data from GBIF
The insect class Thysanoptera, commonly known as thrips, consists of approximately 6,000 known species. These tiny insects are characterized by their fringed wings, asymmetrical mouthparts, and their elongated, slender bodies. Thysanoptera is divided into two suborders, Terebrantia and Tubulifera, with several families and genera within each suborder.
Thysanoptera insects can be found around the world in North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. They inhabit a variety of environments, including forests, grasslands, and agricultural areas, where they can be found on plants, feeding on plant tissues, pollen, or other small insects.
The life cycle of Thysanoptera insects consists of four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Female Thysanoptera lay their eggs within plant tissues, depending on the species. Upon hatching, the larvae feed on plant cells, pollen, or small insects. Thysanoptera larvae undergo two larval stages before entering a non-feeding, pre-pupal stage, and then a pupal stage. Adult Thysanoptera insects emerge from the pupal stage and continue to feed on plant tissues or small insects, depending on the species.
Thysanoptera insects, due to their small size and predominantly terrestrial lifestyle, are not typically relevant to fly fishing. While some thrips species feed on small insects, their primary food sources are plant tissues and pollen, which do not coincide with the diets of most fish. Additionally, Thysanoptera rarely end up in the water.
Each order has an indication of its relevance to fly fishing:
= Not so relevant
= Somewhat relevant
= Most relevant
Megaloptera
Hymenoptera
Coleoptera
Psocoptera
Archaeognatha
Lepidoptera
Trichoptera
Blattodea
Odonata
Dermaptera
Siphonaptera
Orthoptera
Neuroptera
Mantodea
Ephemeroptera
Mecoptera
Raphidioptera
Phasmida
Plecoptera
Hemiptera
Diptera
Strepsiptera
Embioptera
With an account you can make suggestions, save favorites, stay up-to-date on the latest knowledge and discover new fly fishing adventures.
FlyFish Circle is run by fly fishing enthusiasts and is completely free!
Already have an account? Log in here.
I just wanted to let you know that FlyFish Circle is built and maintained by fly fishing enthusiasts. And that's why it's free.
Consider creating an account to join our community. You don't necessarily have to contribute, but this helps us in understanding what to build next for fly fishers around the world.
Joost
Founder of FlyFish Circle
Already have an account? Log in here.
Save favorite species, flies, locations, countries and articles from the library.
FlyFish Circle is run by fly fishing enthusiasts and is completely free!
Already have an account? Log in here.
Make FlyFish Circle better for all fly fishers by suggesting an update. We process these regularly and will always get back to you once we've made changes.