What does scale insect mean?

Definitions for scale insect
scale insect

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Princeton's WordNet

  1. scale insectnoun

    small homopterous insect that usually lives and feeds on plants and secretes a protective waxy covering

Wikipedia

  1. 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 the superfamily Coccoidea due to taxonomic uncertainties. Adult females typically have soft bodies and no limbs, and are concealed underneath domed scales, extruding quantities of wax for protection. Some species are hermaphroditic, with a combined ovotestis instead of separate ovaries and testes. Males, in the species where they occur, have legs and sometimes wings, and resemble small flies. Scale insects are herbivores, piercing plant tissues with their mouthparts and remaining in one place, feeding on sap. The excess fluid they imbibe is secreted as honeydew on which sooty mold tends to grow. The insects often have a mutualistic relationship with ants, which feed on the honeydew and protect them from predators. There are about 8,000 described species. The oldest fossils of the group date to the Early Cretaceous, preserved in amber. They were already substantially diversified by this time suggesting an earlier origin during the Triassic or Jurassic. Their closest relatives are the jumping plant lice, whiteflies , phylloxera bugs and aphids. The majority of female scale insects remain in one place as adults, with newly hatched nymphs, known as "crawlers", being the only mobile life stage, apart from the short-lived males. The reproductive strategies of many species include at least some amount of asexual reproduction by parthenogenesis. Some scale insects are serious commercial pests, notably the cottony cushion scale (Icerya purchasi) on Citrus fruit trees; they are difficult to control as the scale and waxy covering protect them effectively from contact insecticides. Some species are used for biological control of pest plants such as the prickly pear, Opuntia. Others produce commercially valuable substances including carmine and kermes dyes, and shellac lacquer. The two red colour-names crimson and scarlet both derive from the names of Kermes products in other languages.

ChatGPT

  1. scale insect

    Scale insects are small insects of the superfamily Coccoidea, classified under the order Hemiptera, known for their distinct scale-like waxy shell or covering. They come in different varieties which may vary visually, but typically they are immobile and latch onto plants to feed on their sap. They can cause significant damage to plants if left unchecked, as they tend to congregate in large numbers. Female scale insects usually are wingless and lack of visible limbs, and are generally larger than their male counterparts. They are known for giving birth to live young or laying eggs underneath their protective shell.

Wikidata

  1. Scale insect

    The scale insects are small insects of the order Hemiptera, suborder Sternorrhyncha. They comprise the superfamily Coccoidea, previously placed in the now deprecated suborder Homoptera. There are about 8,000 described species of scale insects.

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of scale insect in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of scale insect in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2


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"scale insect." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/scale+insect>.

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