The Margarodidae (illegitimately as Margodidae) or ground pearls are a family of
scale insects
Scale insects are small insects of the order Hemiptera, suborder Sternorrhyncha. Of dramatically variable appearance and extreme sexual dimorphism, they comprise the infraorder Coccomorpha which is considered a more convenient grouping than t ...
within the superfamily
Coccoidea
Scale insects are small insects of the order Hemiptera, suborder Sternorrhyncha. Of dramatically variable appearance and extreme sexual dimorphism, they comprise the infraorder Coccomorpha which is considered a more convenient grouping than the ...
. Members of the family include the
Polish cochineal
Polish cochineal (''Porphyrophora polonica''), also known as Polish carmine scales, is a scale insect formerly used to produce a crimson dye of the same name, colloquially known as "Saint John's blood". The larvae of ''P. polonica'' are sessile ...
and
Armenian cochineal
The Armenian cochineal (''Porphyrophora hamelii''), also known as the Ararat cochineal or Ararat scale, is a scale insect indigenous to the Ararat plain and Aras (Araks) River valley in the Armenian Highlands and in Turkey. It was formerly us ...
(genus ''Porphyrophora'') and the original ground pearl genus, ''Margarodes''. Beginning in 1880, a number of distinct subfamilies were recognized, with the giant coccids (the
Monophlebidae
Monophlebidae is a family of scale insects commonly known as the giant scales or monophlebids. They occur in most parts of the world but more genera are found in the tropics than elsewhere.Maskell recognized the Monophlebidae as a separate family that year, Although Maskell proposed a new family, many continued to regard the monophlebids as a mere subfamily for many years, and the Margarodidae classification continued to be
polyphyletic
A polyphyletic group is an assemblage of organisms or other evolving elements that is of mixed evolutionary origin. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as homoplasies, which are explained as a result of conver ...
through the 20th Century. Since then, taking the advice of Koteja several subfamilies and tribes have been elevated into their own families such as Matsucoccidae and Xylococcidae. The pared-down family of Margarodidae (Margarodidae ''sensu stricto'' or Margarodidae s. s.) is
monophyletic
In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gr ...
Eurhizococcus
''Eurhizococcus'' is a genus of true bugs belonging to the family Margarodidae
The Margarodidae (illegitimately as Margodidae) or ground pearls are a family of scale insects within the superfamily Coccoidea. Members of the family include the Po ...
Margarodes
The scale insect genus ''Margarodes'' is a group in the family Margarodidae. The type species is ''Margarodes formicarum''. The genus was erected in 1828 by Lansdown Guilding who found these waxy "pearls" in the soil on the island of Bahama, as ...
Porphyrophora
The scale insect genus ''Porphyrophora'' is a large group in the family Margarodidae, which includes the insects Polish cochineal and Armenian cochineal formerly used in dye
A dye is a colored substance that chemically bonds to the substrat ...
Monophlebidae
Monophlebidae is a family of scale insects commonly known as the giant scales or monophlebids. They occur in most parts of the world but more genera are found in the tropics than elsewhere.Desmococcus'' McKenzie, 1942 now in the
Pityococcidae
Pityococcidae is a family of scales and mealybugs in the order Hemiptera
Hemiptera (; ) is an order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising over 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, ...
* ''
Drosicha
''Drosicha'' is a genus of true bugs belonging to the family Margarodidae
The Margarodidae (illegitimately as Margodidae) or ground pearls are a family of scale insects within the superfamily Coccoidea. Members of the family include the Polish ...
'' Walker, 1858 now in the
Monophlebidae
Monophlebidae is a family of scale insects commonly known as the giant scales or monophlebids. They occur in most parts of the world but more genera are found in the tropics than elsewhere.Gueriniella'' Fernald, 1903 now in the
Monophlebidae
Monophlebidae is a family of scale insects commonly known as the giant scales or monophlebids. They occur in most parts of the world but more genera are found in the tropics than elsewhere.Icerya
''Icerya'' is a genus of scale insects in the family Monophlebidae. It is named after physician-naturalist Dr. Edmond Icery of British Mauritius.
Hermaphroditism
Hermaphroditism is extremely rare in the insect world despite the comparatively com ...
'' Signoret, 1875 now in the
Monophlebidae
Monophlebidae is a family of scale insects commonly known as the giant scales or monophlebids. They occur in most parts of the world but more genera are found in the tropics than elsewhere.Kuwania'' Cockerell ''in'' Fernald, 1903 now in the
Kuwaniidae
Kuwaniidae is a family of scales and mealybugs in the order Hemiptera. There are at least 4 genera and about 14 described species in Kuwaniidae.
Genera
These four genera belong to the family Kuwaniidae:
* ''Kuwania'' Cockerell, 1903
* ''Neogreen ...
* ''
Marchalina
''Marchalina hellenica'' is a scale insect that lives in the eastern Mediterranean region, mainly in Greece and Turkey. It is an invasive species in Melbourne, Australia. It lives by sucking the sap of pine trees, mainly the Turkish Pine (''Pin ...
Monophlebidae
Monophlebidae is a family of scale insects commonly known as the giant scales or monophlebids. They occur in most parts of the world but more genera are found in the tropics than elsewhere.Steingelia'' Nassonov, 1908 now in the Steingeliidae
* '' Xylococcus'' Löw, 1883 now in the Xylococcidae