Striped pine scale Toumeyella pini

Fig. 1. Toumeyella pini adult female on Pinus caribaea var. bahamensis in Carmichael, New Providence, Bahamas © C. Malumphy

The striped pine scale, Toumeyella pini (King, 1901) (Hemiptera: ), feeds exclusively on pines, and causes damage both directly by its feeding and indirectly due to its associated sooty moulds growing on the honeydew excreted by the . It was originally described from specimens collected from Pinus austriaca in Canada and occurs widely in Eastern USA. Toumeyella pini has not been recorded within the United Kingdom Overseas Territories but it has been introduced to the Bahamas and there is a risk that it could spread to the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) which form part of the same archipelago. The closely related pine tortoise scale Toumeyella parvicornis (Cockerell) has had a devastating impact on the pine yards since its accidental introduction to TCI.

Geographical distribution Toumeyella pini is native to the Nearctic region (Ben-Dov, 2014; Kosztarab, 1996) and has recently been introduced to the Bahamas (first collected in Andros in March 2008 and New Providence in March 2009 by Martin Hamilton and Michele Sanchez). Nearctic : Canada; USA. Neotropical : Bahamas (Andros; New Providence) (New country record).

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Fig. 2 Toumeyella pini adult females on a pine © R. Fig. 3 Pine needles coated in sooty moulf due to an Scott Cameron, Advanced Forest Protection, Inc., infestation of Toumeyella pini © R. Scott Cameron, Bugwood.org Advanced Forest Protection, Inc., Bugwood.org

Fig. 4 Pinus caribaea var bahamensis shoot covered Fig. 5 Toumeyella pini post-reproductive adult in sooty mould and waxy deposits due to an female on Pinus caribaea var bahamensis , Bahamas infestation of Toumeyella pini , Bahamas © Fera ©Fera

Fig. 6 Toumeyella pini mature adult female Fig. 7 Toumeyella pini empty male test surrounded surrounded by sooty mould, Bahamas ©Fera by sooty mould, Bahamas ©Fera

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Host plants Toumeyella pini is oligophagous on pines (Ben-Dov, 2014). Pinnaceae : Pinus austriaca , P. caribaea var. bahamensis (New host record) , P. echinata , P. eliottii , P. mugo , P. palustris , P. resinosa , P. rigida , P. serotina , P. sylvestris , P. taeda , P. taeda , P. virginiana , Pinus spp..

Description Teneral adult females are strongly convex, circular or oval in outline, reddish brown, with three irregular, longitudinal, white bands (Figs 1-2). Mature post-reproductive females (Figs 5 and 6) become a uniform, dull, brown colour; they can be up to 7 mm in length and 7 mm in width. Toumeyella is a Neotropical and Nearctic genus containing 16 species which have been reviewed by Kondo & Williams (2008), several species feed on pines. Detailed morphological descriptions and illustrations of adult female T. pini are provided by Williams & Kosztarab (1972), Hamon & Williams (1984) and Kosztarab (1996). Slide-mounted teneral adult female T. pini may be distinguished from all other species found on pine by the presence of large conical pre-opercular pores. However, these pores can be almost impossible to see in old, post-reproductive, heavily sclerotized females. The adult male and tests (Fig. 7) are described by Miller & Williams (1990, 1995). Sheffer & Williams (1990) provide a key for the identification of the first instars of eight species of Toumeyella , including pini .

Pest biology, dispersal and detection This scale appears to prefer to feed on the outer tips of branches and on newer growth (Kosztarab, 1996), and is rarely recorded on larger limbs. The life cycle of T. pini has been studied in the State of Georgia (South Eastern USA) where it has three generations each year on P. taeda , and produced an average of 1865 eggs per female (Clarke et al ., 1989). Important natural enemies include a parasitoid wasp Coccophagus lycimnia (Walker) (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) and a predatory moth larva coccidivora (Comstock) (: ). The main natural dispersal stage is the first instar or crawler which may be carried in wind currents or on other . All stages may be moved over long distances and internationally with trade in pine trees. Large populations of T. pini are easily detected due to sooty mould (Figs 3-4), waxy deposits, poor growth and needle loss. Low density populations can be very difficult to detect as the scales are relatively small and cryptic. Toumeyella pini is occasionally found together with T. parvicornis on the same host plant.

Economic importance and damage Toumeyella pini is a moderate pest of pine. It reduces plant vigour and coats the tree with honeydew which serves as a medium for the growth of sooty moulds, turning the needles and bark black. However, its economic importance is difficult to assess due to confusion between this species and T. parvicornis . It appears that at least some of the damage reported in the past to be due to T. parvicornis should have been attributed to T. pini .

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References Ben-Dov, Y. 2014. ScaleNet, Toumeyella pini . Accessed 16 June 2014. http://www.sel.barc.usda.gov/catalogs/coccidae/Toumeyellapini.htm Clarke, S. R., DeBarr, G. L. & Berisford, C. W. 1989. Life history of the woolly pine scale Pseudophilippia quaintancii Cockerell (Homoptera: Coccidae) in loblolly pine seed orchards. Journal of Entomological Science 24 : 365-372. Hamon, A. B. & Williams, M. L. 1984. The soft scale insects of (Homoptera: Coccoidea: Coccidae). of Florida and Neighboring Land Areas. Fla. Dept. of Agric. & Consumer Serv. Div. Plant Ind., Gainesville. 194 pp. King, G.B. 1901. The Coccidae of British North America. Canadian Entomologist 33 : 333-336. Kosztarab, M. 1996. Scale insects of Northeastern North America. Identification, biology, and distribution . Virginia Museum of Natural History, Martinsburg, Virginia. 650 pp. Miller, G. L. & Williams, M. L. 1990. Tests of male soft scale insects (Homoptera: Coccidae) from America north of Mexico, including a key to the species. Systematic Entomology 15 : 339-358. Miller, G. L. & Williams, M. L. 1995. Systematic analysis of the adult males of Toumeyella group, including Mesolecanium nigrofasciatum , Neolecanium cornuparvum . Pseudophilippia quaintancii and Toumeyella spp. (Homoptera: Coccidae) from America north of Mexico. Contributions of the American Entomological Institute 28 (4): 1-68. Sheffer, B. J. & Williams, M. L. 1990. Descriptions, distribution, and host-plant records for eight first instars in the genus Toumeyella (Homoptera: Coccidae). Proc. Entomol. Soc. Washington 92 : 44- 57. Williams, M. L. & Kondo, T. 2008. Status and current composition of the soft scale genus Toumeyella (Hemiptera: Coccidae). 29-32 In: Branco, M., Franco, J. C. & Hodgson, C. J. (Editors), Proceedings of the XI International Symposium on Scale Insect Studies, Oeiras, Portugal, 24-27 September 2007. ISA Press, Lisbon, Portugal. 322 pp. Williams, M. L. & Kosztarab, M. 1972. Morphology and systematics of the Coccidae of Virginia with notes on their biology (Homoptera: Coccoidea). Research Division Bulletin, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University 74 : 1-215.

Author: Chris Malumphy Address: The Food and Environment Research Agency, Sand Hutton, York, YO41 1LZ, UK. Email: [email protected] Date: 16/06/2014 Version 1 The production of this datasheet was partly funded by the Biodiversity Programme of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

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