A New Species of Comones Noyes and Woolley (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae), a Parasitoid of Flat Grass Scale, Aclerda Takahashii Kuwana (Hemiptera: Aclerdidae), a New Pest on Sugarcane in Florida
Mottern, Jason L., Stocks, Ian, and Gates, Michael W. 2021. "A New Species of Comones Noyes and Woolley (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae), a Parasitoid of Flat Grass Scale, Aclerda Takahashii Kuwana (Hemiptera: Aclerdidae), a New Pest on Sugarcane in Florida." Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 123, (1) 136–146. https://doi.org/10.4289/0013-8797.123.1.136.
Comones dulcis Mottern new species is described from specimens reared from flat grass scale, Aclerda takahashii Kuwana, on sugarcane in Palm Beach County, Florida. The new species exhibits considerable size variation and apparent allometric scaling of body parts that are often used for encyrtid species diagnosis. Therefore, both morphological and molecular data are presented to describe and diagnose the species. Photographs of the congeners C. ferrierei (Burks) and C. gastron (Walker)_ are included for comparison. Prospects for incorporating C. dulcis into a biological control program targeting flat grass scale are discussed.
