Species Dactylopius ceylonicus (Green, 1896)

Museums

Regional Maps

• Coccus cacti ceylonicus Green, E.E. 1896. Catalogue of Coccidae collected in Ceylon. Indian Museum Notes 4: 2-10 [7].
• Coccus indicus Green, E.E. 1908. Remarks on Indian scale insects (Coccidae), Part III. With a catalogue of all species hitherto recorded from the Indian continent. Memoirs of the Department of Agriculture India, Entomological Series 2: 15-46 [28].
• Dactylopius argentinus Dominguez, J.A. 1915. [Chemical composition of the Grana (indigenous cochineal) Dactylopius argentinus new species.] Composición química de la Grana (cochinilla indígina) Dactylopius argentinus nov. spec. Trabajos del Instituto de Botánica y Farmacología 17: 3-5 [3].

Taxonomic Decision for Synonymy

• Green, E.E. 1922. The Coccidae of Ceylon. London : Dulau & Co. Vol. 5. [358] (synonymy of Coccus indicus Green, 1908)
• Lizer y Trelles, C.A. 1922. Notas sobre tres especies del género Dactylopius (Coccidae) halladas en el pafs. Physis (Buenos Aires) 6: 106-111 (synonymy of Dactylopius argentinus Dominguez, 1915)

Ecological Descriptors

Sap-feeder.

ID Keys

(De Lotto, G., 1974) [173-174] (female; world); (Ferris, G.F., 1955) [86] (female; North America)

GENERAL

Good description and illustration of the adult female given by Ferris, G.F. 1955. Atlas of the Scale Insects of North America, v. 7, the Families Aclerdidae, Asterolecaniidae, Conchaspididae Dactylopiidae and Lacciferidae. iii. Palo Alto, California : Stanford University Press 233 pp., De Lotto, G. 1974. On the status and identity of the cochineal insects (Homoptera: Coccoidea: Dactylopiidae). Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 37: 167–193. Portillo Martinez, L. 1995. [Hosts of the carmine cochineal (Dactylopius spp.) and considerations for its improvement.] Los hospederos de las cochinillas del carmin (Dactylopius spp.) y algunos consideraciones sobre su aprovechamiento. pp. 308 pp. in Anon. (ed). Conocimiento y aprovechamiento del nopal : 6to. congreso nacional y 4to. congreso internacional, 6-10 de noviembre de 1995 : memorias / compilaciön. Las Agujas, Nextipac, Zapopan, Mexico : Universidad de Guadalajara, Centro Universitario de Ciencias Biolögicas y Agropecuarias, et al. distinguished between the fine cochineal species Dactylopius coccus and a group of wild cochineal species comprising D. austrinus, D. ceylonicus, D. confertus, D. confusus, D. opuntiae, D. salmianus, D. tomentosus and D. zimmermani.

BIOLOGY

Karny, M. 1972. Comparative studies on three Dactylopius species (Homoptera: Dactylopiidae) attacking introduced opuntias in South Africa. Entomology Memoirs, Department of Agricultural Technical Services, Republic of South Africa. Pretoria 26: 1–19 studied in South Africa three populations of Dactylopius spp., namely Species P, Species J and Dactylopius indicus [=Dactylopius ceylonicus]. Studies were carried out on their life histories and their suitability for biological control of Opuntia spp.

SYSTEMATICS

The original description of Dactylopius argentinus Dominguez, 1915 (current status synonym of D. ceylonicus ), includes the binomen, distribution, host plants and the chemical composition of the female.

STRUCTURE

Colour illustration of the adult female and male given by Green, E.E. 1922. The Coccidae of Ceylon. Part V. London : Dulau & Co..

ECONOMIC AND CONTROL

Goeden, R.D. 1978. Part II: Biological control of weeds. In, [Unknown] (ed). Introduced Parasites and Predators of Arthropod Pests and Weeds: A World Review. Washington, D.C. : Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture 545 pp. discussed the use of this species in biological control of Opuntia spp.

Common Name References

Green, E.E. 1922. The Coccidae of Ceylon. London : Dulau & Co. Vol. 5. (Wild Cochineal Insect)

Naumann, I.D., Ingram, R.J. & Floyd, R. 2002. Australian Insect Common Names, based on CSIRO Handbook of Australian Insect Names. 6th edn 1993. http://www.ento.csiro.au/aicn/. (Monacantha Cochineal)

History of changes