A number of species of thysanoptera (thrips) are increasingly important crop pests in many parts of the world, as well as in some cases being vectors of plant disease. This book is a completely revised and rewritten edition of manual on these minute flying insects written by J.M. Palmer, L.A. Mound and G.J. du Hearne and published in 1989, which provides a practical identification guide on a worldwide scale. This throughly updated edition incorporates all the taxonomic changes and new distribution records which have occurred since the publication of the first edition and a new set of pictorial keys, which have been developed and used for training courses at the International Institute of Entomology and which aims to enhance the ability of the non-specialist to identify thrips to species. The text is a tool for applied entomologists and crop protection specialists involved in the control of crop pest thrips, and thrip taxonomists.