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.
Cycas revoluta is a species of gymnosperm in the family Cycadaceae, native to southern Japan including the Ryukyu Islands. It is one of several species used for the production of sago, as well as an ornamental plant. The sago cycad can be distinguished by a thick coat of fibers on its trunk. The sago cycad is sometimes mistakenly thought to be a palm, although the only similarity between the two is that they look similar and both produce seeds.
Aulacaspis yasumatsui, or cycad aulacaspis scale (CAS), is a scale insect species in the genus Aulacaspis that feeds on cycad species such as Cycas revoluta or Dioon purpusii. Other common names include the cycad scale, the sago palm scale, and the Asian cycad scale. This is a serious pest of cycads which can kill its host plant.
Aulacaspis, is a scale insect genus in the family Diaspididae. The type species is Aulacaspis rosae.
Parlatoriini is a tribe of armored scale insects. Takagi (2002) indicated that the Parlatoriini appear to be phylogenetically related to the Smilacicola and the Odonaspidini. Takagi went on to say about the tropical east Asian Parlatoriini that, The current classification of their genera may be largely tentative because the adult females are simple-featured and much modified owing to the pupillarial mode of life, and also because the second instar nymphs are generally similar among parlatoriines, whether the adult females are pupillarial or not. Andersen found that separating out pupillarial forms into a separate subtribe, Gymnaspidina, was counterproductive, as being non-dispositive.
Diaspidini is a tribe of armored scale insects.
Lepidosaphidini is a tribe of armored scale insects.
Furcaspidina is a subtribe of armored scale insects, traditionally regarded as part of the Aspidiotini. While the subtribe Furcaspidina was not mentioned in Takagi's 2002 study, the Aspidiotini were not deemed as problematical as the Diaspidini and Lepidosaphidini. In 2006, Williams reduced the Furcaspidina to a single genus, with about twenty-eight species. Andersen in 2009 suggested that the Furcaspidina belonged in an expanded subfamily of Diaspidinae; however, additional analysis suggests that the furcaspids are better placed in a distinct, but laterally equivalent subfamily to the Diaspidinae, possibly together with the gymnaspids which Borchsenius placed in the Aspidiotinae subfamily.
Gymnaspidina is a subtribe of armored scale insects. Takagi (2002) does not mention the Gymnaspidina, but in 2006 Morse and Normark still placed Gymnaspis aechmeae within the Parlatoriini tribe. Anderson (2010) found Gymnaspidina to be radically polyphyletic and suggested that the gymnaspids and the furcaspids might be placed in a distinct, but laterally equivalent subfamily to the Diaspidinae, rather than in the Aspidiotinae.
Augulaspidina is a subtribe of armored scale insects. It was not confirmed by Takagi's 2002 study.
Chionaspidina is a subtribe of armored scale insects established by Borchenius. But unlike many of the subtribes recognized by Borchenius, this one was found to be morphologically valid by Takagi. Similarly, in molecular analysis, Andersen et al. found a clade roughly corresponding to the subtribe Chionaspidina.
Diaspidina is a subtribe of armored scale insects. It occurs mostly in the Americas and Africa, with a few species in tropical Asia. In the Americas Pseudoparlatoria is the largest genus, with Diaspis second; in Africa Diaspis is the largest genus. The grouping identified by Balachowsky in 1954 as the subtribe Diaspidina, are now the tribe Diaspidini.
Fioriniina is a subtribe of armored scale insects in the family Diaspididae. They are found almost exclusively in the Old World.
Kuwanaspidina is a subtribe of armored scale insects. They feed on bamboo.
Rugaspidiotina is an obsolete subtribe of armored scale insects. It was established by Balachowsky in 1949 to accept those Diaspidinae which had rugaspidiotine characteristics as exemplified by genus Rugaspidiotus MacGillivray, species Rugaspidiotus arizonicus, and was moved from the Odonaspidini to the Diaspidini by Borchsenius. It was raised to tribe status as Rugaspidiotini. However, close examination of species assigned to the Rugaspidiotini showed that the rugaspidiotine characteristics convergently evolved in different groups of diaspidids. Rugaspidiotini and Rugaspidiotina are now regarded as obsolete groupings.
Lepidosaphidina is a subtribe of armored scale insects.
Melissotarsus is a rare African genus of ants in the subfamily Myrmicinae. They are known from the Afrotropics and Malagasy regions, where their nests are located in living wood, built by tunneling through the wood under the bark. They are rarely seen outside of their nests, which may contribute to their perceived rarity. However, they are considered pest insects because of damage they can cause to trees, including economically important ones such as mangos and trees in the family Burseraceae, including Aucoumea klaineana, Dacryodes buettneri, and Dacryodes edulis.
Fiorinia is a genus of armored scale insects with around 70 species. The species are widely distributed around the world. However, the large majority of them are found in southern Asia. They infest woody plants like forest or crop trees, palm trees and shrubs. Several species are invasive and these are mainly polyphagous species which have spread with the trade of ornamentals. For example, 7 species have been introduced into North America.
Phaenochilus is a genus of lady beetles in the family Coccinellidae. There are about 10 described species in Phaenochilus. It is found in Southeast Asia, India, and Japan.
