Fig wax scale

Appearance

This scale is deeply encased in pinkish-gray wax, which is divided into three wax plates on each side with additional plates at the anterior and posterior ends. The single large dorsal plate has a central nucleus. Dorsal and lateral plates are separated from each other by dark red lines which are the color of the scale's body beneath the wax. The anterolateral and mediolateral plates have some white wax which indicates the stigmatic wax bands.

Reproduction

In general, adult females overwinter on twigs and produce eggs very early in the spring. The eggs hatch to crawlers which move to feed on leaves. After about one month, the crawlers molt to 2nd instar nymphs and migrate to the leaf petioles or to new shoots. Maturity is attained in the summer, and a new generation of crawlers is produced. These nymphs mature late in the fall, overwinter on the twigs, and repeat the cycle (Bodkin 1927). Swailem and Awadallah (1973) reported scales to be equally present on both upper and lower leaf surfaces on fig trees in Egypt.

Food

The fig wax scale has been reported on a broad range of host plants, including the following families:

Anacardiaceae (Mangifera indica, Schinus terebinthifolius)
Annonaceae (Annona cherimoya, Annona muricata, Annona squamosa)
Apocynaceae (Nerium oleander, Thevetia peruviana)
Aquifoliaceae (Ilex aquifolium)
Araliaceae (Hedera helix)
Balsaminaceae (Impatiens sultani)
Compositae (Artemisia spp.)
Convolvulaceae (Convolvulus spp., Ipomoea batatus)
Euphorbiaceae (Euphorbia longan)
Lauraceae (Laurus nobilis, Persia americana)
Moraceae (Ficus sp., Morus alba, Morus nigra)
Musaceae (Musa cavendishi, Musa sapientum)
Myrtaceae (Myrtus communis, Psidium guajava)
Palmae (Chamaerops humilis)
Pittosporaceae (Pittosporum tobira)
Platanaceae (Platanus orientalis)
Proteaceae (Grevillea robusta)
Rosaceae (Crataegus vulgaris, Prunus dulcis, Pyrus communis)
Rutaceae (Citrus aurantium, Citrus limon, Citrus paradisi)
Sapindaceae (Litchi chinensis, Nephelium lappaceum, Sapindus saponaria)
Sebestenaceae (Cordia myxa)
Strellitziaceae (Strelitzia reginae)
Vitidaceae (Vitis vinifera) (Ben-Dov 1993)