Volume: 5, 2026
5th International PhD Students’ Conference at the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland:
ENVIRONMENT – PLANT – ANIMAL – PRODUCT
Abstract number: E008
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24326/ICDSUPL5.E008
Published online: 22 April 2026
Diversity of thrips fauna (Insecta, Thysanoptera) of two types of meadow communities in Pliszczyn
Aleksandra Garbacz*1, Katarzyna Czepiel-Mil1 and Agata Kamińska2
1 Department of Zoology and Animal Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Biology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, 13 Akademicka St., 20-950 Lublin, Poland
2 Faculty of Environmental Biology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, 13 Akademicka St., 20-950 Lublin, Poland
* Corresponding author: aleksandra.garbacz@up.edu.pl
Thrips (Thysanoptera) are an order of insects whose body length ranges from 0.5 to 5 mm in temperate climates and up to 14 mm in tropical conditions. Thrips are commonly found on wild and cultivated plants. Due to their small body size and secretive lifestyle, they are difficult to detect and eliminate quickly. The main aim of this study was to examine the qualitative and quantitative composition of thrips found in two floristically diverse plant communities in Pliszczyn. The first study site was a xerothermic grassland located on a slope, and the second was a fresh meadow with a small number of plants characteristic of a wet meadow. Insects were collected using three methods: an entomological sweep net, picking insects from flowering plants, and a Moericke trap hung on a tree. The aim of the study was to distinguish habitat and trophic groups, as well as feeding preferences among the collected thrips, to characterize their zoogeography, and to determine seasonal changes in their occurrence.
During research at two floristically diverse sites in Pliszczyn, a total of 10,899 Thysanoptera individuals belonging to 51 species were collected using three selected methods. The identified species belonged to three families: Aeolothripidae, Thripidae, and Phlaeothripidae. The captured thrips were found on 63 species of flowering plants belonging to six families. Both quantitative sampling (entomological sweep net) and qualitative sampling (shaking from flowering plants) showed that the quantitative diversity of Thysanoptera was greater at the xerothermic grassland site than at the fresh meadow site. The number of species collected at both sites was similar.
Keywords: fresh meadow; meadow communities; Thysanoptera; xerothermic grassland
How to cite
Garbacz A., Czepiel-Mil K., Kamińska A., 2026. Diversity of thrips fauna (Insecta, Thysanoptera) of two types of meadow communities in Pliszczyn. In: 5th International PhD Students’ Conference at the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland: Environment – Plant – Animal – Product. https://doi.org/10.24326/ICDSUPL5.E008