''Conchaspis capensis'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

scale insect 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 th ...

from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

found on ''

Metalasia muricata ''Metalasia muricata'', commonly known as white bristle bush or blombos, is a hardy virgate or twiggy shrub with honey-scented flowers usually 2–4 m tall, woody with a rounded crown, and an important component of the coastal and mountain fynbos ...

'' and ''

Phylica ''Phylica'' is a genus of plants in the family Rhamnaceae. It contains about 150 species, the majority of which are restricted to South Africa, where they form part of the '. A few species occur in other parts of southern Africa, and on islan ...

'' species. It was originally described by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, ...

in his 1763 work ''

Centuria Insectorum The first page of ''Centuria Insectorum'', as included in ''Amoenitates Academicæ'' ' (Latin, "one hundred insects") is a 1763 taxonomic work by Carl Linnaeus, and defended as a thesis by Boas Johansson; which of the two men should for taxonom ...

''.

Description

A number of characteristics differentiate ''Conchaspis capensis'' from other

s. The animals normally have three segments to the antennae, although there may be as many as five. The multilocular pores (the pores through which scale insects secrete the waxy scale) are found on segments 3 to 5 of the

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the tors ...

and sometimes on the sixth segment as well, but not the

thorax The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the ...

; they are often arranged in clusters of 2–3 pores. The head and thorax are expanded on either side. There is also considerable reduction in the

legs A leg is a weight-bearing and animal locomotion, locomotive anatomical structure, usually having a columnar shape. During locomotion, legs function as "extensible struts". The combination of movements at all joints can be modeled as a single ...

, with various segments being fused together.

Distribution

''Conchaspis capensis'' is only known to occur in

Host plants

''C. capensis'' has been found on a range of host plants, belonging to two families. In the

Rhamnaceae The Rhamnaceae are a large family of flowering plants, mostly trees, shrubs, and some vines, commonly called the buckthorn family. Rhamnaceae is included in the order Rosales. The family contains about 55 genera and 950 species. The Rhamnaceae ...

, several species of ''

'' have acted as hosts, including '' Phylica axillaris'', '' Phylica capitata'', '' Phylica nervosa'' and '' Phylica stipularis'', while in the

Compositae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae we ...

(=Asteraceae), only ''

'' has been recorded as a host for ''C. capensis'', and this may refer to '' Metalasia densa'', which was not differentiated from ''Metalasia muricata'' in Linnaeus' time.

Taxonomy

''Conchaspis capensis'' was first described by

as ''Coccus capensis'', based on material he had been sent from the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is ...

by the province's governor,

Ryk Tulbagh Ryk Tulbagh (14 May 1699, Utrecht – 11 August 1771, Cape Town) was Governor of the Dutch Cape Colony from 27 February 1751 to 11 August 1771 under the Dutch East India Company (VOC). Tulbagh was the son of Dirk Tulbagh and Catharina Catte ...

. It is unclear whether Tulbagh deliberately sent the scale insects, or whether they were merely attached to a plant which Tulbagh sent to Linnaeus. Linnaeus' description appeared in ''

'', a thesis defended by Linnaeus' student Boas Johansson. ''Conchaspis phylicae'', described by Mamet in 1954, is a

subjective synonym The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linna ...

. ''C. capensis'' was moved to the genus ''

Conchaspis ''Conchaspis'' is a genus of true bugs belonging to the family Conchaspididae. The species of this genus are found in Central America and Southern Africa. Species: *'' Conchaspis acaciae'' *''Conchaspis angraeci'' *'' Conchaspis buchananiae' ...

'' by Yair Ben-Dov in 1981. The species has no common name.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5158619 Conchaspididae Insects described in 1763 Insects of South Africa Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus