Carl Linnaeus and his scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccoidea) * Williams, D. J. Z. - Q Zootaxa 2007 2007-12-21 1668 1 427 490 5ZHML Linnaeus 1758 [151,306,831,857] Insecta Coccidae Coccus Animalia Hemiptera 27 454 Arthropoda species rusci  ( Figure 8)  Description In life, adult female covered in a thick waxy symmetrical test, white, tinged with red. Adult female on microscope slide, broadly oval, fairly membranous except for short conical sclerotized anal process. Antennae 6 segmented, segment 3 longest. Legs well developed, tibia and tarsus divided, with a small articulatory sclerosis. Claw with a minute denticle and a pair of expanded digitules. Anal plates together quadrate, anterior margins shorter than almost parallel sides, each plate with 3 setae posteriorly. Anal ring with 6 setae. Dorsal surface with minute, blunt setae, scattered. Minute pores present, each usually with contiguous smaller pore, fairly numerous. Other minute pores present, simple. Ventral surface with poorly developed stigmatic clefts, each cleft with anterior and posterior rows of short conical setae, rows almost touching on mesothorax. Other marginal and medial setae flagellate. Multilocular disc pores present around vulvar region and at least on preceding abdominal segment. Quinquelocular pores forming wide bands between spiracles and stigmatic clefts. Tubular ducts present in small groups anteromedially to antennal bases and 1 or 2 present medially on abdomen. Microducts present, abundant.  Comments This species is commonly known as the fig wax scale. There are no apparent specimens in Linnaeus’ collection. Linnaeus (1758)gave a good description of this scale insect leaving little doubt about its identity. He also cited earlier works by other authors and these contain either short descriptions or illustrations, often described as small molluscs, to which the insect resembles, but found on  Myrtusand  Ruscus. Linnaeus described the species from Apulia, Italy, but it is now common throughout the Mediterranean area and elsewhere ( Ben-Dov, 1993) on many plants. This scale insect is currently placed in the genus  CeroplastesGraywhere it was transferred by Signoret (1872). One of its many synonyms is  Coccus caricaeFabricius, the typespecies of  ColumneaTargioni Tozzetti, a genus named after Fabio Colonna when Latinised, an author that Linnaeus cited. Hodgson (1994)has illustrated and described this species in the combination  Columnea rusci(L.), the work from which the accompanying illustration is taken by kind permission of the author and CABI Publishing.   FIGURE 8.  Coccus rusciL. Adult female. (Now  Ceroplastes rusci(L.)). For full synonymy of this species see Ben-Dov (1993)and for a full description of the adult female see Hodgson (1994)and Pellizzari & Camporese (1994). There are also many synonyms of the genus  Ceroplastesbut Qin & Gullan (1995)have shown by cladistic analysis that  Ceroplastesis a monophyletic group that includes all so-called wax scales. Although these authors did not include  Columnea, nevertheless, they did include  Ceroplastes rusciin their analysis and the species should probably remain in this combination.