Scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) on sugarcane in Colombia, with description of a new species of Tillancoccus Ben-Dov (Coccidae) Author Caballero, Alejandro Author Ramos-Portilla, Andrea Amalia Author Kondo, Takumasa text Zootaxa 2017 4258 5 490 500 journal article 33123 10.11646/zootaxa.4258.5.6 1f99571f-2d4f-471c-b329-121c877e46bd 1175-5326 570450 EA2A1731-E70D-4EC5-81D0-32F793CB3BF0 Dysmicoccus boninsis ( Kuwana, 1909 ) Hosts. Polyphagous, known to feed on 39 species belonging to ten plant families ( García Morales et al . 2016 ). In Colombia , D. boninsis has been previously recorded feeding on stems of sugarcane. In this study, this species was found for the first time feeding on the roots of sugarcane. Diagnosis. Dorsum: numerous oral collar tubular ducts present; with only 8 or 9 pairs of cerarii, each containing 2 enlarged setae. Venter: multilocular disc pores present on the fifth and posterior abdominal segments; translucent pores present on hind coxa and a few on the hind tibia; circulus normally notched at each side and divided by an intersegmental line, but sometimes small and oval (Williams & Granara de Willink 1992 ). Distribution. Cosmopolitan. In Colombia , it has been previously recorded from the departments of Antioquia , Caldas , Cauca , Nariño , Norte de Santander , Quindío , Santander , Tolima and Valle del Cauca ( Kondo et al . 2008 ). Here it is recorded for the first time from the department of Caquetá . Economic importance and control. The gray sugarcane mealybug has been recorded from a wide range of grasses, as well as host plants from other families. On sugarcane, this species has been generally recorded as a minor pest but, when attended by ants, it may kill young shoots ( Bartlett 1978 ). Kondo et al. (2008) recorded eight ant species associated with D. boninsis in Colombia : Brachymyrmex sp., Crematogaster sp., Ectatoma ruidum Roger, Linepithema sp., Neilanderia sp., Solenopsis sp., Pheidole sp. and Wasmania auropunctata Roger. Dysmicoccus boninsis is not considered a pest of sugarcane in Colombia ( Lastra & Gómez 2000 , Bustillo 2013 ). Material studied. COLOMBIA : Antioquia , Medellín , 1560 m a.s.l. , 25.iii.2010 , 5 ♀ , UNAB voucher N° 843 ; Boyacá : Togui , Vda. Garibal, Fca El Milagro , 1664 m a.s.l. , 05°55′00″N , 73°30′54″W , 23.iii.2012 , coll. H. Matheus , 9 ♀ , UNAB voucher N° 843 ; Caquetá : Florencia , Vda. La Carbona , 674 m a.s.l. , 01°42′01″N , 75°02′26″W , 12.x.2013 , coll. J. Silva , tended by Crematogaster sp. ( Formicidae ) and Wasmannia auropunctata (Formicidae) , 1 ♀ , UNAB voucher N° 843; Florencia, Vda. Avenida Sebastopol, 826 m a.s.l. , 01°44′57″N , 75°39′13″W , 13.x.2013 , coll. J. Silva , tended by Pheidole biconstricta Mayr (Formicidae) , 6 ♀ , UNAB voucher N° 843; Florencia, Vda . San Luis , 388 m a.s.l. , 01°41′01″N , 75°37′42″W , 11.x.2013 , coll. E. Rojas , tended by Pheidole sp. ( Formicidae ), 4 ♀ , UNAB voucher N° 843 ; Chocó : Acandí , Sapzurro , 8.i.2005 , coll. F. Serna & E. Vergara , 19 ♀ , UNAB voucher N° 843 ; Tolima , Coello , Ibagué , San Francisco , 1158 m a.s.l. , 04°23′56″N , 75°17′18″W , 13.xii.2005 , coll. A. Ramos , 6 ♀ , UNAB voucher N° 843. Note. All material collected off stems of S. officinarum , except for those from Boyacá , which were collected from roots. Observations. This is the first record of D. boninsis being associated with Pheidole biconstricta in Colombia .