''Lepidosaphes beckii'' also known as purple scale, mussel scale, citrus mussel scale, orange scale, comma scale and mussel purple scale is a scale insect that is a pest of ''Citrus'' trees. The small insects attach themselves to leaves, fruits and small branches and cause injury by sucking the tree's sap.Citrus mussel scale
HYPPZ, accessed 22 January 2012. The specific name ''beckii'' is in honour of historian Richard Beck.

Description

''Lepidosaphes beckii'' was originally described under the name ''Coccus beckii'' by English entomologist Edward Newman from a fruit imported to Great Britain. Newman's original description reads as follows: The adult female citrus mussel scale is up to three millimetres long.Watson G. W
"''Lepidosaphes beckii'' - Description"
. Arthropods of Economic Importance - Diaspididae of the World, accessed 22 January 2012.

Host plants

These are usually ''

Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

'' host plant species such as

sweet orange An orange is a fruit of various citrus species in the family Rutaceae (see list of plants known as orange); it primarily refers to ''Citrus'' × ''sinensis'', which is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the related ''Citrus × ...

''Citrus'' × ''sinensis''.

Predators

Predators of ''Lepidosaphes beckii'' include chalcid wasps from families Aphelinidae,

Encyrtidae Encyrtidae is a large family of parasitic wasps, with some 3710 described species in about 455 genera. The larvae of the majority are primary parasitoids on Hemiptera, though other hosts are attacked, and details of the life history can be variab ...

and Signiphoridae:"search for ''Mytilococcus beckii''"
Universal Chalcidoidea Database, accessed 22 January 2011. * Aphelinidae: '' Aphytis chrysomphali'', '' Aphytis diaspidis'', '' Aphytis holoxanthus'', '' Aphytis lepidosaphes'', '' Aphytis mytilaspidis'', '' Encarsia citrina'', '' Encarsia lounsburyi'', '' Eretmocerus corni'' and '' Pteroptrix chinensis'' * Encyrtidae: '' Adelencyrtus inglisiae'', '' Metaphycus flavus'' and '' Ooencyrtus'' sp. * Signiphoridae: '' Signiphora flavopalliata'' and '' Signiphora merceti''

References

This article incorporates public domain text from the reference

External links

photos of ''Lepidosaphes beckii''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q6527681 Lepidosaphidini Agricultural pest insects Taxa named by Edward Newman Citrus pests Insects described in 1869 Hemiptera of Asia