First record of the Bermuda grass scale Odonaspis ruthae Kotinsky, 1915 (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha: Diaspididae) in Colombia Rodríguez, José Mauricio Montes Kondo, Takumasa Insecta Mundi 2016 2016-06-24 2016 485 1 6 74HM5 Kotinsky Kotinsky Gland 1915 [192,566,483,507] Insecta Diaspididae Odonaspis Animalia Hemiptera 5 4 Arthropoda species ruthae   Diagnosis  Unmounted specimens( Fig. 1A, B). Scale cover of the adult female moderately convex, oval to cone shape, white in color; ventral side of cover thick; exuviae of earlier stages present on margin of waxy cover; scale cover yellow or brown when rubbed; male scale cover elongate oval, of similar color and texture to the female scale cover, of a yellow color when rubbed; adult female body pinkish in color; eggs pink or red in color; first-instar nymphs (crawlers) pink in color; commonly found on grasses, especially at the bases of leaf sheaths, stolons and roots, and occasionally on the leaves ( Miller and Davidson 2005).  Mounted specimens( Fig. 1C, D and E). Perivulvar pores present ( Fig. 1E); vulva placed at level or posterior to level of anus; postvulvar sternite not sclerotized; ventral macroducts present on all abdominal segments, each as wide as dorsal macroducts; gland tubercles absent from thorax; pygidial margin with 1 pair of scleroses ( Ben-Dov 1988).   Remarks.Of the 43 species of scale insects assigned to the genus  Odonaspis, nine species have been recorded from the Neotropical region, namely,  O. benardiBalachowsky( Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, Martinique),  O. galapagoensisBen-Dov(Galapagos island),  O. greenii(Cockerell)(Guadeloupe, Guyana, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Suriname),  O. litorosaFerris ( Panama),  O. pauciporaBen-Dov ( Guyana),  O. ruthae( Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru),  O. saccharicaulis(Zehntner)( Bahamas, Brazil, Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, Puerto Ricoand ViequesIsland, Sao Tome and Principe, U.S. Virgin Islands, Venezuela), and  O. secreta(Cockerell)( Cuba, Guadeloupe) ( Garcia et al. 2016). Interestingly all species hitherto recorded from the Neotropical region have perivulvar pores which may be lacking in species of  Odonaspisfrom other geographical regions. The Bermudagrass scale is widely distributed in the New World, from North, Central and South America ( Garcia et al. 2016).  Odonaspis ruthaeis considered an invasive species in South America ( Wyckhuys et al. 2013); and it is a highly polyphagous species (recorded on plants from five different families), however, most of the host plants belong to the Poaceaeand the main host is Bermudagrass ( Ben-Dov 1988, Miller and Davidson 2005). The economic impact caused by  O. ruthaeis not known in pastoral areas of Colombiaand it is difficult to quantify its damage due to its cryptic habits and because is part of a complex of sap sucking insects present in pastures. The only reports of damage caused by  O. ruthaein the world are those on grass pastures in the southern United States, causing wilt and dieback on Bermudagrass ( Gill 1997).   Material examined.  Odonaspis ruthaeKotinsky.  Colombia: Norte de Santander, Cúcuta, Estadio General Santander. 07°53240.83N, 72°30206.83W. 350 ma.s.l., 23.ix.2015, col. F. Fuentes, ex.On the stalk of Bermuda grass  Cynodon dactylon(L.) ( Poaceae), 2 slides 2 adultfemales ( CTNI); Valle del Cauca, Palmira, Corpoica, Centro de Investigación Palmira, 03°312033N, 76°19206.13W, 998 ma.s.l., 25.x.2015, coll. T. Kondo, ex. Between leaf sheaths of the underground part of  E. colona(L.) Link ( Poaceae), 3 slides 3 adultfemales; 1 envelope with dry material ( MECP).