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How to identify it
- Adults are black, winged and small, about 2 to 3 mm long. Males are smaller than females.[1][3]
- Larvae are yellow to orange and 0.7 to 1.0 mm long. The second larval stage, bright orange, has two crosswise lines on the last few body segments.[1][3]
- Eggs are tiny (0.4 mm), oval and golden, laid on the leaflets and leaf stalks of new growth.[1]
- Look for groups of larvae clustered around the stem of a tender peppertree shoot, with adults on the new, unfolding leaves. The adults are weak fliers and gather in groups soon after they emerge.[2][3]
Look-alikes
| Look-alike | How to tell them apart |
|---|---|
| Cuban laurel thrips | Another thrips of southeastern US ornamentals, but it lives inside rolled leaf galls on Ficus, not on Brazilian peppertree shoots.[4][1] |
Where it lives
Native to Brazil and concentrated in the eastern part of the country. Released in Florida beginning in 2019; by mid-2021 one USDA ARS rearing facility had released nearly a million of the thrips in 14 counties across the weed's range in southern Florida. Cold-tolerance tests suggest it could also establish in other southern states, including Arizona, California and Texas, where Brazilian peppertree also grows.[1][3]
Biology and life cycle
Eggs hatch in 5 to 8 days. The two larval stages feed for 8 to 12 days, then the larvae drop or walk to the ground and pass through three non-feeding pupal stages in the soil and leaf litter for 5 to 14 days. Egg to adult takes 18 to 34 days, depending on temperature.[1][2][3]
Females can reproduce with or without mating; unmated females produce only males.[1]
It has several generations a year, with up to four observed in Curitiba, Brazil, where it is common.[2]
It is highly specific to Brazilian peppertree. In lab tests where it had no other choice it could develop on 10 other plants, but it produced far fewer offspring: an average of 124 adults on Brazilian peppertree, 20.3 on Peruvian peppertree and fewer than 2 on each of the others. Given a choice, it produced adult offspring on only four other plants, Peruvian peppertree, pistachio, smooth sumac and a Hawaiian sumac, and then in very low numbers.[1]
Researchers have found that what was called P. ichini is a complex of two closely related, look-alike species.[2]
Damage and signs
- Larvae and adults rasp the plant and suck sap. Larval feeding often kills the growing tip of a shoot, and the injury may let plant diseases in.[1][2]
- On Brazilian peppertree, feeding reduces growth, plant height and the number of green stems and causes flowers to abort. Attacked plants recover slowly, are less vigorous and set less fruit.[1]
- UF/IFAS reports that it can severely reduce Brazilian peppertree biomass, while host tests show it develops poorly on other plants.[1]
Health risk
The UF/IFAS sources describe it only as a plant feeder specific to Brazilian peppertree; they mention no harm to people or pets.[1][2]
Control
Prevention
No control is needed. It is a biological control agent approved and released to attack Brazilian peppertree in Florida, so leave it alone where you find it on the weed.[1][3]
Biological control
Land managers use it as part of Brazilian peppertree control. It is expected to reduce the weed's harm to the environment and possibly the need for other control methods.[1]
Common questions
- I found tiny black and orange insects on Brazilian peppertree in Florida. What are they?
- They may be Brazilian peppertree thrips, a biological control agent released in Florida since 2019. Adults are black and winged, and the larvae are yellow to bright orange, clustered on tender shoots.[1][3]
- Will Brazilian peppertree thrips attack my garden plants?
- Host-range tests showed it is highly specific to Brazilian peppertree. It developed poorly on the few other plants it would use, such as Peruvian peppertree and some sumacs, and it has not been seen feeding on other plants in its native range.[1][2]
- When was the Brazilian peppertree thrips released in Florida?
- A federal technical advisory group recommended its release in 2016, and USDA-APHIS approved field releases in Florida in May 2019.[1][3]
Sources
- University of Florida IFAS Extension (EDIS), “Brazilian Peppertree Thrips, Pseudophilothrips ichini (Hood), Featured Creatures EENY-737 (P. Prade, C. R. Minteer and J. P. Cuda, 2019).” journals.flvc.org/edis/article/view/115312 (accessed 2026-11-09)
- University of Florida IFAS Extension (EDIS), “Classical Biological Control of Brazilian Peppertree (Schinus terebinthifolia) in Florida, ENY-820 (J. P. Cuda et al.).” journals.flvc.org/edis/article/view/138339 (accessed 2026-11-09)
- Insects (MDPI), “Advances in Mass Rearing Pseudophilothrips ichini, a Biological Control Agent for Brazilian Peppertree in Florida (Halbritter et al. 2021, Insects 12:790).” pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8468526/ (accessed 2026-11-09)
- University of Florida IFAS Extension (EDIS), “Thrips of Ornamentals in the Southeastern US, ENY-845 (J. Funderburk, S. Diffie, J. Sharma, A. Hodges and L. Osborne, 2007).” journals.flvc.org/edis/article/view/117083 (accessed 2026-11-09)
- iNaturalist, “Pseudophilothrips ichini taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/1549833 (accessed 2026-11-09)