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Photo#242206
scale - Aulacaspis yasumatsui

scale - Aulacaspis yasumatsui
Pinellas County, Florida, USA
November 25, 2008
Size: <1mm
Pretty sure this is a scale insect. These guys have invaded Florida and kill sago plants if left untreated. Can they be ID'd to species?
Thanks.

Images of this individual: tag all
scale - Aulacaspis yasumatsui scale - Aulacaspis yasumatsui

A quick internet search on sago, FL and scale
kicks up a lot of info, and led me to this Cycad scale factsheet. We have a page for this species and I'll add some info to it now. Your image looks like the one in this article, though the images already on our page (identified by Eric Eaton as a winged male) look totally different. Your images are the best I've seen on the web so far, in fact. : )

 
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Wow! Thanks for all the research, Hannah. I agree, the pictures on Bugguide ID'd as Aulacaspis yasumatsui look very different than the pictures I posted. I'll let you experts sort that out. Should I move these pictures to the family or genus?

 
I think yours fits well at species level
I would just double-check the comparison with Magnolia White Scale (the link on the guide page has details), if you have access to the sample still and can flip one over. Not to worry about the winged male looking totally different - that's as it should be, I believe.

 
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Hi Hannah. I think I disagree with the ID of this
as a Aulacaspis yasumatsui based on the links you provided. For one, a link describes the dispersal individuals as "crawlers" that use wind to disperse. Another link shows the individuals in my photo as males - which have no wings.
BUT, I do think you ID'd my photos correctly so I'll move them.
By the way... there is no flipping these guys over without a powerful microscope and super tiny tools.
Thanks.

 
You may be right
I THOUGHT I came across a reference to alates (winged adults) in my reading on this insect, but I can't track it down now.

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