OBSERVATIONS ON THE STRUCTURE OF THE ORACER- 
ATUBAE AND SOME NEW LEPIDOSAPHINE 
SCALES (HEMIPTERA)* 
By GLapys HoKE, 
Como, Mississippi. 
An oraceratuba is the opening of a ceratuba to the exterior. 
So far as I have been able to ascertain an oraceratuba is regarded 
as an opening having a diameter approximating the diameter of 
the ceratuba. The attached end of the ceratuba is usually 
heavily chitinized in the altaceratube, though in the breva- 
ceratube an excess of chitinization is seldom present. Attached 
to the edge of the ceratuba and stretched across the end is a 
thin membrane with a slit in the center, which may be opened 
or closed to allow the wax to be extruded or retained in the 
ceratuba. This opening in the membrane which closes the 
ceratuba is the oraceratuba. The edge of the membrane 
around the oraceratuba is slightly chitinized. Figure 1 is an 
altaceratuba of Lepidosophes pinnaeformis with the oraceratuba 
open. Figure 8 is a large brevaceratuba of Scobinaspis dentata, 
with the oraceratuba closed. 
The ceratube of the tribes Parlatoriini, Diaspidini and 
Aspidiotini are closed in the same fashion as those of the 
Lepidosaphini. It is very probable that the ceratube of the 
Fioriniini and the Leucaspidini are closed by a similar mem- 
brane. 
The presence of a membrane which closes the attached end 
of the ceratubee—hitherto regarded as open—and the presence 
in the membrane of an aperture which may be opened and 
closed seems to confirm MacGillivray’s suggestion in The 
Coccidz that the ceratube function as reservoirs for the storage 
of the wax secreted by the wax-cell which is attached to the 
end of the bulla, and which is formed into threads as it passes 
through the aperture. 
* Contributions from the Entomological Laboratories of the University of 
Illinois, No. 66. 
337 
