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Project Noah Nature School
super-family Coccoidea
. White cups about 1mm and mostly open at the top
There are a number of Acacia of this species on the ridge among the old wood among Eucalypts and Cassuarina and grasses. Remnant coastal ridge of dry open forest.
All of the Acacia have multiple trunks and are low shrubs. Most of them have one or two branches with this outbreak on them # cup o bug (possibly Acacia longifolia or Sydney Golden Wattle)
The "two kinds" of scale insect on the acacia are actually males and females of the one species. The smaller white scales are the covers of males - they have an opening after the winged male leaves. The larger brown globular scales are old females - they stay where they begin to feed and die in situ.
These look to be two kinds of scale insects. They are sucking the life out of the plant they're on. The ants "farm" them; place them on the tree, move them around when they're still mobile, and then harvest the sugar water poop the scale discharge. Gardeners hate these because pretty much the only way to keep them in check is to squish them by hand.
Spotted on Dec 18, 2013
Submitted on Dec 18, 2013
