Pulvinaria psidii Maskell

Family

Coccidae

Common name

Green shield scale

Field characters

Body oval; relatively convex in cross section; body green in young females, as specimens mature, changing darker medially, completely brown after oviposition; with white fluffy wax covering dorsum at time of oviposition; ovisac produced beneath and behind female, slightly convex, with weakly indicated medial groove, white, flocculent, about 1 time length of body. Occurring on leaves and stems; oviposition on twigs or leaves. Males apparently rare. Eggs laid inside ovisac.

Validation characters

Marginal setae mostly broadly fimbriate; multilocular pores anterior of anterior spiracle predominantly with more than 5 loculi, conspicuously larger than pores laterad of anterior spiracle; 10-14 submarginal tubercles. Other characters: Each anal plate with 4 apical setae and no subdiscal seta; with 3 subapical setae on each plate; anal fold with 4 fringe setae; ventral tubular ducts scattered over venter; multilocular pores normally with 10 loculi; multiloculars present in vulvar area forward to segment 2; dorsal tubular ducts present; tibio-tarsus articulated, with sclerosis; claw without denticle; claw digitules equal; 3 pairs of prevulvar setae (posterior pair often obscured by anal plates); stigmatic setae differentiated from other marginal setae, middle seta longer than lateral setae; anal plates with posterior margin about equal in length to anterior margin; antennae 8-segmented; preopercular pores inconspicuous, restricted to area anterior of anal plates.

Comparison

Pulvinaria psidii is similar to P. floccifera by having submarginal tubercles and ventral multilocular pores scattered over medial areas of abdomen. Pulvinaria psidii differs by having larger-sized multilocular pores anterior of anterior spiracle compared to pores laterad of anterior spiracle (same size in P. floccifera); multilocular pores predominantly with 10 loculi (7 or 8 in P. floccifera); marginal setae predominantly fimbriate (predominantly swollen or simple, rarely fimbriate in P. floccifera).

U.S. quarantine notes

This species was intercepted 142 times on a variety of hosts at U. S. ports-of-entry between 1995 and 2012, with specimens originating from Australia, Barbados, Cambodia, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Egypt, France, Grenada, Guam, Guatemala, Hawaii, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Laos, Lebanon, Mexico, The Netherlands, Panama, The Philippines, Puerto Rico, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, and Vietnam. We also have examined specimens taken in quarantine from Antigua (Chalcas); Australia (Ixora, Litchi); Bahamas (Gardenia, Psidium); Barbados (Euonymus, Psychotria); Bermuda (Bryophyllum, Campsis, Codiaeum, Duranta, Laurus, Nerium, Pittosporum, Rhododendron, Sedum, Tecoma); Brazil (Mammea); China (Dracontomelon, Gardenia, Lansium, Litchi); Colombia (Citrus, Eugenia); Costa Rica (Anthurium, Coffea, Gardenia); Cuba (Ficus, Litchi, Psidium); Fiji (Ixora); Guatemala (Dracaena); Hong Kong (Litchi); India (Coffea, Litchi, Psidium); Indonesia (Lagerstroemia, Myristica, Thea); Jamaica (Anthurium, Bidens, Citrus, Mangifera, Myristica, Phaeomena, Punica); Japan (Gardenia, Litchi); Maldives (Annona, Psidium); Mexico (Carissa, Chenopodium, Citrus, Diospyros, Ficus, Gardenia, Litchi, Plumeria, Psidium, Rhus, Zingiber); Montserrat (Psidium); Panama (Anthurium, Tectona); Peru (Mangifera); The Philippines (Eugenia, Gardenia, Lansium, Litchi, Psidium, Vanda); Puerto Rico (Gardenia); Samoa (Cordyline); Singapore (Nephelium); Tahiti (Alpinia, Annona, Gardenia); Taiwan (Dimocarpus); Thailand (Cordyline, Dracaena, Eugenia, Nephelium); Trinidad (Anthurium, Gardenia). ScaleNet includes hosts in 60 plant families and distribution records include all zoogeographic regions. A few other species of Pulvinaria have been taken in quarantine in addition to P. floccifera (Westwood), P. hydrangeae Steinweden, P. ixorae Green, P. polygonata Cockerell, P. psidii and P. urbicola Cockerell including: P. aurantii Cockerell (Japan, on Citrus); P. citricola Kuwana (Ecuador, on Musa; Japan, on Diospyros); P. elongata Newstead (Colombia, on Oryza ); P. horii (Kuwana) (Japan, on Acer); P. neocellulosa Takahashi (India, on Murraya); and Pulvinaria vitis (Canada, on Tilia).

Important references

HamonWi1984; Hodgso1968; Tang1991; WilliaWa1990.

Scalenet catalog and citation list

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