LIBRARY

HEMIPTERA 359
was described in 1880 by Comstock as injurious to fruit trees growing at San
Jose, Calif., and subsequently it appeared throughout the United States and
elsewhere in temperate and subtropical regions of the world where deciduous
fruit trees and ornamental trees and shrubs are grown. It undoubtedly originated
in eastern Asia. Other important species, formerly in Aspidiotus and
now also referred to this genus, are the cherry scale, Quadraspidiotus forbesi
(Johnson), and the walnut scale, Q. juglans-regii:1i (Comstock), of North America,
and Q. ostreiEformis (Curtis) on deciduous fruit trees in Europe and North
America.
The rose scale, Aulacaspis rOSiE (Bouche), a red-bodied species with white
scales (the scales of the females circular and those of the male minute and carinated),
is a cosmopolitan species on Rubus and Rosa. A more destructive relative
is the West Indian peach or mulberry scale, Aulacaspz's pentagon a (Targioni),
a tropical and subtropical species which has a wide distribution in Asia,
southern Europe, northern Africa, and southern North America. Its depredations
on mulberry trees in Italy were claimed to have been checked by the introduction
of the aphelinid parasite, Prospaltella berlese Howard, from America.
This coccid is polyphagous on a wide variety of host plants.
The scurfy scale, CMonaspis jurjura (Fitch), which appears somewhat like
the rose scale, is a common and abundant coccid in eastern North America.
where it feeds upon a variety of wild and cultivated trees and shrubs and is a
pest of some consequence.
The oystershell scale, Lepidosaphes lllrni (Linn.), the scales of which resemble
miniature oysters and which cover the bodies of the insects and quantities
of white eggs, is perhaps the most widely distributed cosmopolitan
species as well as One of the most omnivorous feeders. It is chiefly confined to
deciduous trees and shrubs in the temperate regions but also feeds upon evergreen
broad-leaved plants. A native of East Asia, it has been disseminated on
ornamental plants and fruit trees. It often completely covers the main trunk,
limbs, and branches of the trees and may cause the death of the wild hosts
over considerable areas. The purple scale, L. beckii (Newman), and Glover's
scale, L. gloverii (Packard), are Old World species distributed chiefly on citrus
trees, to which they are quite destructive pests. The Mediterranean fig scale,
L. ficus (Signoret), is a pest of figs in the Mediterranean basin and has recently
become established in the fig orchards of California.
The olive scale, Parlatoria olem (Colvee), on olives and other hosts; the date
palm scale, P. blanchardii (Targioni), on date palms; and the black parlatoria,
P. zizyphus (Lucas), on dates, citrus, jujubes, and other hosts, are all important
injurious species in the Mediterranean region and western Asia and have been
introduced into many other warm areas (the first two into Arizona and California
and the last into Mississippi). P. them Ckll, is an: important pest of tea in
eastern Asia. The members of this genus have a very large second exuvia.
The pine leaf scale, Phenacaspis piniJolim (Fitch) (Chionaspis), is one of the
commonest and most conspicuous insect pests feeding on pine trees throughout
North America. The yellow exuvire, the conspicuous white female scales, and