The genus Thrips includes about 280 species worldwide. An identification key is provided to 41 from the Australian Region. Of these, 33 (including 7 new species) are recorded from Australia, 5 (including 1 new species) are known only from New Zealand, and 3 (including 1 new species) are known only from New Caledonia. Two species-groups are defined: the “Thrips obscuratus speciesgroup” comprising 8 species from New Caledonia and New Zealand, and the “Thrips seticollis species-group” comprising 6 species from the southern half of Australia. A further group, the “Thrips orientalis species-group” involves 12 species in South East Asia, and four of these are recorded from Australia. In the temperate areas of this continent there are 5 species that are clearly introduced subsequent to European settlement. From Australia’s northern tropical area 18 species are recorded here, but as most of these are known also from Asian or Pacific territories some may have been introduced either through human activities or naturally on winds. The Australian Plague Thrips is recognised as comprising two species, the essentially southern T. imaginis and a closely related new species, T. safrus, usually north of Latitude 27º. For all 41 species host-plant and distribution details are included, as well as morphological diagnoses.

Abstract. Urinary steroid profile analysis using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) has been reported for the diagnosis of abnormal steroidogenesis in newborn infants with some success. We tried to establish the reference values of 63 urinary steroids in Japanese newborn infant, using GC/MS in selected ion monitoring (SIM) that utilizes two characteristic mass ions for each steroid for definitive identification. We studied 36 healthy full-term newborn infants (1-56 days of age) on spot urine samples to define the reference values (mg/g creatinine, median and 10-90 percentile range) and to investigate the possible difference between daytime and nighttime levels. We also studied 23 healthy adult females (20-24 years of age) on 24-hour-urine for the comparison of the reference values of newborn infants. Fifty metabolites of DHEA, pregnenolone, 17-hydroxypregnenolone, androstenedione, progesterone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, 21-deoxycortisone, corticosterone, 18-hydroxycorticosterone, aldosterone, 18-hydroxycortisol, 11-deoxycortisol, cortisone, cortisol, and estrogen in each infant were measurable without interference, but 13 metabolites of 11-hydroxyandrostenedione, pregnenolone, 11-deoxycorticosterone, corticosterone, 11-dehydrocorticosterone, 21-deoxycortisol, 11-deoxycortisol and cortisol were unmeasurable in each infant due to the interference of fetal cortex steroids as confirmed by abnormal peak area ratios of two mass ions. All 63 metabolites in each control adult were measurable without interference. 16a-, 16b-, and 15b-hydroxy metabolites of 3b-hydroxy-5-en-steroids, and 6b-, 18-hydroxy and 11-oxo-metabolites of corticosteroids were significantly higher in full-term newborn infants than those in adults as previously reported. Urinary steroids showed little circadian variation in the newborn infants, indicating that spot urine can substitute for 24-hour urine.

Relationships are considered among taxa of Thripinae lacking long setae on the pronotum, and these taxa are here discussed as the Anaphothrips genus-group. Seven genera from Australia are considered members of this group: Anaphothrips, Apterothrips, Aptinothrips, Caprithrips, Dodonaeathrips gen.n., Ozanaphothrips gen. n. and Pandorathrips gen. n. Six new species are described in Ozanaphothrips, and one each in Dodonaeathrips and Pandorathrips. The worldwide genus Anaphothrips now comprises 79 species, of which 43 are here recorded from Australia, including 27 new species. In other parts of the world Anaphothrips species breed on grasses, but hostassociations of the Australian species are remarkably diverse, involving at least 20 plant families. Illustrated keys are provided for the identification of the Anaphothrips genus-group taxa from Australia. Variation is discussed in the form of the pore plates (=glandular areas or areae porosae) that occur on the sternites of males.

The genus Scirtothrips and related genera in Japan were studied, and the following four genera and eight species recorded: Anascirtothrips okinawanus n. sp., Drepanothrips reuteri Uzel, Scirtothrips albidus n. sp., S. dorsalis Hood, S. flavus n. sp., S. katsura n. sp. and S. machili n. sp., Parascirtothrips fagaceae n. gen. et sp. The male of D. reuteri is recorded from Japan for the first time. Ten genera are recognized in the Scirtothrips genus group, and relationships between these are discussed.

The Trichromothrips genus-group is defined and reviewed with a key to the 13 included genera. Four new species of the genus Trichromothrips Priesner are described from Japan and Taiwan, and a key to the species of Japan and Taiwan is provided. Trichromothrips (Dovithrips) Bhatti is recognized as synonym of Trichromothrips here.