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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Polyphaga » Series Cucujiformia » Coccinelloidea » Coccinellid group » Lady Beetles (Coccinellidae) » Scymninae » Dusky Lady Beetles (Scymnini)

Tribe Scymnini - Dusky Lady Beetles

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Numbers · Size · Identification · Food · Print References · Works Cited
Small coccinellid - Scymnus nebulosus Dusky Lady Beetle - Nephaspis oculatus 3mm Beetle Lady Beetle - Scymnus rubricaudus - male Dusky Lady Beetle - Scymnus kansanus Scymnus (Pullus) rubricaudus Casey - Scymnus rubricaudus Scymnus securus J. Chapin - Scymnus securus Scymninae - Nephus
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Coleoptera (Beetles)
Suborder Polyphaga
No Taxon (Series Cucujiformia)
Superfamily Coccinelloidea
No Taxon (Coccinellid group)
Family Coccinellidae (Lady Beetles)
Subfamily Scymninae
Tribe Scymnini (Dusky Lady Beetles)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Author of Tribe: Mulsant 1846
Numbers
6 genera n. of Mex. (1)
Size
Usually less then 3.0 mm (2)
Identification

Small, rounded oval to oblong, highly convex (dome-shaped)
Brown or black; may have brown, yellowish, or reddish markings. Pronotum and elytra often with contrasting colors.
Dorsal (upper) surface and eye pubescent (having short, fine hairs)
Antenna 8 to 11 segmented, terminal segments forming distinct club
Maxillary palpus with apical segment cylindrical or securiform
Leg free, simple, not expanded or enlarged; tarsus trimerous or cryptotetramerous, tarsal claw simple or with basal tooth.
Abdomen with 6 visible sterna, sterna usually not fused medially, apex of 6th abdominal sternum of male modified (2)


Larvae are covered in waxy white tufts, resembling mealybugs or hairy caterpillars.
Food
Small soft-bodied insects, such as aphids. Genus Cryptolaemus specializes on mealybugs.
Print References
Gordon, R.D. 1985. The Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of America north of Mexico. Journal of the New York Entomological Society 93(1): [4] + 912 pp. Full Text
especially pp. 99-315. (2)
Gordon, R.D. 1976. The Scymnini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the United States and Canada: Key to Genera and Revision of Scymnus, Nephus, and Diomus. Bulletin of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences 28: 1-362. (3)
Works Cited
1.American Beetles, Volume II: Polyphaga: Scarabaeoidea through Curculionoidea
Arnett, R.H., Jr., M. C. Thomas, P. E. Skelley and J. H. Frank. (eds.). 2002. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton, FL.
2.The Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) of America North of Mexico
Robert D. Gordon. 1985. Journal of the New York Entomological Society, Vol. 93, No. 1.
3.The Scymnini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) of the United States & Canada: Key to genera and revision of Scymnus, Nephus, & Diomus
Robert D. Gordon. 1976. Bulletin of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences, Buffalo, NY, Vol 28.
Contributed by Mike Quinn on 31 March, 2009 - 9:11am
Additional contributions by Abigail Parker
Last updated 16 June, 2011 - 1:43pm

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