Natural and Disrupted Patterns of Geographical Distribution in Thysanoptera (Insecta)

Thrips are a frequent constituent of the aerial plankton and as a result the less host-specific species can disperse widely. Moreover, many are cryptic in behaviour and have been widely distributed through commercial traffic involving living plants, hay, dead wood, and the soil ballast of sailing ships. In recent years resolution of many taxonomic and systematic problems within this group of insects has revealed examples of natural vicariance as well as examples of disrupted distributions associated with major trading routes including the Atlantic slave trade and the New Zealand colonists. This review emphasizes the relationship between the biology of species and the ease with which they have been dispersed, as well as the diffilculty of recognizing natural distribution patterns in organisms so readily transported by winds.