ARTHROPOD MANAGEMENT AND APPLIED ECOLOGY Species Of Thrips Associated With Cotton Flowers

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) flowers are inhabited by many insect species, including com-mon thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae). Thrips species have been hypothesized to increase the severity of hardlock in cotton, but it was unclear if their numbers could be managed using insecticide applications. The objectives of this study were to describe the thrips species and other insects found in cotton flowers and to determine how they are affected by insecticide applications. Population characteristics of the thrips were also investigated, including sex ratio, within-season variability, predator interactions, and rates of accumulation in flowers. White, first-day, flowers were sample