Fauna of New Zealand Number 51 Coccidae (Insecta: Hemiptera)

C. J. Hodgson and R.C. Henderson

Male Soft Scale Insects

The soft scale family Coccidae is one of ten families of plant sucking scale insects present in New Zealand.

This Fauna describes all the known adult males, pupae and prepupae of indigenous soft scales of New Zealand. Forty-three species of indigenous soft scales are currently known from New Zealand and, of these, 21 prepupae, 27 pupae, and 31 adult males are described and illustrated in this volume. Introduced species are not covered. Keys to genera and species of each of these stages are provided as far as possible.

This is only the second study on adult males of any scale insect group for a complete geographic area and the first to include the pupae and prepupae. The likely importance of the structure of the latter two groups in helping to understand the relationships within the family Coccidae is not yet known but knowledge of the structure of the adult males is considered to be essential.

This paper should provide a strong basis for a later phylogenetic study of the New Zealand soft scales, which is planned once all the immature stages have been described. NB: The adult females were described and illustrated in Fauna of New Zealand Number 41.

Contributor Chris Hodgson graduated from Kings College, London, in 1960. He first became fascinated by scale insects in Rhodesia in 1962, and is credited with numerous publications in this field. In 1998 he organised the VIIIth International Symposium on Scale Insects Studies at Wye. Now officially “retired” he is working on scale insects at the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff, concentrating on the males and scale insect phylogeny.

Contributor Rosa Henderson graduated from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, in 1965. Rosa began her entomological career in 1985, rearing insects for DSIR. Her interest in the soft scales began with the collection of many undescribed species during the Insect Survey of the East Cape Region, 1992-1994, organised by John Dugdale. Since 1992, she has worked on scale insects in the N.Z. Arthropod Collection for Landcare Research and is curator of the specimens in that part of NZAC. Rosa is author or co-author of 24 scientific papers.

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Product information

Author: C. J. Hodgson and R.C. Henderson
ISBN: 978-0-47-809360-5
Publisher: Manaaki Whenua Press
Publication date: 2004
Pages: 228
Format: Paperback