Explanation of Names
Chilocorus nigrita (Fabricius 1798)
nigrita = 'negro'
Size
3.2-4.0 mm (Featured Creatures)
Identification
the only medium-sized, non-pubescent, glossy black coccinellid in Florida with a pale head and lateral margins of the pronotum (Featured Creatures)
larva yellow or brown with long spines.
Range
s FL -
Map (1)(Featured Creatures)
(2), native to e. Asia
(3), but now introduced pan-tropically
Life Cycle
primarily a predator of scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccidae), but also has been reported to feed on whiteflies, aphids and psyllids. (Featured Creatures)
a voracious feeder on scale insects, with each beetle capable of destroying 500 or more scales during its development (Omkar and Pervez 2003).
Remarks
first collected in Florida in October 2007, in Miami-Dade County. There are now 15 Florida records for this species, 13 from Miami-Dade County and two from Broward County.
(1)Print References
Omkar and Pervez A. 2003. Ecology and biocontrol potential of a scale-predator, Chilocorus nigritus. Biocontrol Science and Technology 13: 379-390.
Internet References
Featured Creatures - Michael C. Thomas and Orland J. Blanchard, Jr., 2013
