Scale insects are small insects of the order Hemiptera, suborder Sternorrhyncha. Of dramatically variable appearance and extreme sexual dimorphism, they comprise the infraorder Coccomorpha which is considered a more convenient grouping than the superfamily Coccoidea due to taxonomic uncertainties. Adult females typically have soft bodies and no limbs, and are concealed underneath domed scales, extruding quantities of wax for protection. Some species are hermaphroditic, with a combined ovotestis instead of separate ovaries and testes. Males, in the species where they occur, have legs and sometimes wings, and resemble small flies. Scale insects are herbivores, piercing plant tissues with their mouthparts and remaining in one place, feeding on sap. The excess fluid they imbibe is secreted as honeydew on which sooty mold tends to grow. The insects often have a mutualistic relationship with ants, which feed on the honeydew and protect them from predators. There are about 8,000 described species.
The silverleaf whitefly is one of several species of whitefly that are currently important agricultural pests. A review in 2011 concluded that the silverleaf whitefly is actually a species complex containing at least 40 morphologically indistinguishable species.
The San Jose scale is a hemipterous insect in the family Diaspididae. It is an agricultural pest as it causes damage and crop losses to many fruit crops. In 1914, Q. perniciosus became the first documented case of insecticide resistance.
Aonidiella aurantii or red scale is an armored scale insect and a major pest of citrus. It is thought to be a native of South China but has been widely dispersed by the agency of man through the movement of infected plant material. In the United States it is known as California red scale. It was first found in California between 1868 and 1875, apparently brought there on planting material imported from Australia.
Aleurocanthus woglumi is a species of whitefly in the family Aleyrodidae. It is a pest of citrus crops, and is commonly known as the citrus blackfly because of its slate-blue colour. It originated in Asia, but has spread to other parts of the world. The parasitic wasps, Encarsia perplexa and Amitus hesperidum can help control the pest.
Planococcus citri, commonly known as the citrus mealybug, is a species of mealybugs native to Asia. It has been introduced to the rest of the world, including Europe, the Americas, and Oceania, as an agricultural pest. It is associated with citrus, but it attacks a wide range of crop plants, ornamental plants, and wild flora.
Aleurodicus dispersus, the spiralling whitefly, is a species of small, white sap-sucking insect, a true bug in the order Hemiptera. It originated in Central America and the Caribbean region and has spread to many of the world's tropical and subtropical regions, where it has become a major pest of agricultural crops.
Pseudotheraptus wayi, the coconut bug, is a species of leaf-footed bug in the family Coreidae. It is a pest of coconut in East Africa.
Pseudaulacaspis pentagona, the white peach scale or mulberry scale, is a species of armoured scale insect in the family Diaspididae. This scale infests over 100 different genera of plants including many fruit trees and ornamentals.
Hemiberlesia lataniae, the latania or palm scale, is a species of armored scale insect in the family Diaspididae. It was first described by the French entomologist Victor Antoine Signoret in 1869 using Latania lontaroides, a species of palm tree endemic to Réunion as its host; since then, it has been found on avocado trees growing in South Africa, Australia, Israel, the United States, and on a range of other plants in many parts of the world.
Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis is a species of thrips in the family Thripidae. It is most commonly known as the greenhouse thrips, the glasshouse thrip or black tea thrips. This species of thrips was first described in 1833 by Bouché in Berlin, Germany. H. haemorrhoidalis also has many synonyms depending on where they were described from such as: H. adonidum Haliday, H. semiaureus Girault, H. abdominalis Reuter, H. angustior Priesner, H. ceylonicus Schultz, Dinurothrips rufiventris Girault. In New Zealand, H. haemorrhoidalis is one of the four species belonging to the subfamily Panchaetothripinae.
Chilocorus cacti, known generally as the cactus lady beetle or the twice-stabbed cactus lady beetle, is a species of lady beetle in the family Coccinellidae. It is native to the Caribbean region, North America, Central America, and South America. The adults and larvae feed on scale insects and attempts have been made to use it for biological pest control.
Cryptognatha nodiceps, known generally as the coconut scale predator or sugarcane scale predator, is a species of lady beetle in the family Coccinellidae; it is found in the Caribbean region, North America, and Oceania, having been introduced to various countries in an attempt to provide biological pest control of the coconut scale.
Saissetia oleae is a scale insect in the family Coccidae. It is considered one of the three main phytophagous parasites of the olive tree, together with the olive fruit fly and the olive moth. Although it is a common parasite which occurs most often in olive trees, it is a polyphagous species, also attacking citrus trees as well as various ornamental shrubs such as oleanders, pittosporums, sago palm, and euonymus.
Pyrilla perpusilla, commonly known as the sugarcane planthopper, is a planthopper in the family Lophopidae. It is native to Asia where it feeds on grasses and other plants and is a major pest of sugarcane and sorghum.
Protopulvinaria pyriformis, commonly known as the pyriform scale, is a species of soft scale insect in the family Coccidae. It is a pest of avocado and is found in many countries around the world where avocados grow.
Quadraspidiotus juglansregiae, commonly known as the walnut scale, is a species of armoured scale insect in the family Diaspididae. It is native to North America where it feeds on a wide range of ornamental and forest trees and bushes.
Selenaspidus articulatus is an armoured scale insect in the family Diaspididae, commonly known as the West Indian red scale. It is a polyphagous species found in tropical and subtropical regions around the world as a pest species of Citrus and other fruit and ornamental trees.
Aleurodicus cocois, commonly known as the coconut whitefly, is a species of whitefly in the family Aleyrodidae; it feeds on coconut and other palm trees in South America and the Caribbean region.
Planococcus ficus, commonly known as the vine mealybug, is a species of mealybug, belonging to the family Pseudococcidae, native to tropical and subtropical regions. The vine mealybug is found in Europe, Northern Africa, Southern Africa, the Americas, and the Middle East. The vine mealybug is invasive to weedy plants in many different regions of the world.
