There are also some that are associated with species of ants that act as herders and carry the young ones to favorable protected sites to feed. Sometimes they delay settling down either until they are starving, or until they have been blown away by wind onto what presumably is another plant, where they may establish a colony separate from the parent. They immediately crawl around in search of a favorable spot to settle down and feed. Within moments they conquer the use of their functional legs and are called "crawlers". This substance makes the cochineal insect appear white or grey from the outside, though the body of the insect and its nymphs produces a red pigment, which makes the insides of the insect look dark purple. The nymphs secrete a waxy white substance over their bodies for protection from water loss and excessive sun.
The group shows high degrees of sexual dimorphism female scale insects, retain the immature external morphology even when sexually mature, a condition known as neoteny.Īfter mating, the fertilised female increases in size and gives birth to tiny nymphs. They secrete a waxy coating for defense this coating causes them to resemble reptilian scales or fish scales, hence their common name. They are especially numerous near the habitats of the Myrmeke.Īdult female scales are almost always immobile (aside from mealybugs) and permanently attached to the plant they have parasitized. They can be found in the Black Wood, or any lush forest, prairie, or garden. They also sometimes feed on fungal mats and fungi. They are parasites of plants, feeding on sap drawn directly from the plant's vascular system. They penetrate the plants with their beak-like mouthparts and feed on their juices, remaining immobile unless alarmed. This substance makes the cochineal insect appear white or grey from the outside, though the body of the insect produces a red pigment, which makes the insides of the insect look dark purple.The females, wingless and about 5 mm (0.20 in) long, cluster on plants.
They secrete a waxy white substance over their bodies for protection from water loss and excessive sun. Cochineal insects are soft-bodied, flat, oval-shaped scale insects.
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