The common falsepit scale has one generation per year and overwinters as eggs 
in the test (6/5). In Virginia, eggs hatch in mid-May, and adults appear in late July 
or early August. Egg laying begins in mid-September. Feeding takes place on the 
stems and twigs of the host. The common falsepit scale produces large pits and 
welts on its host, giving the plant a distorted, unnatural appearance. 
Family Cerococcidae 
Cerococcids 
This family is a small, homogeneous group that is similar in external appearance 
to the falsepit scales. Adult female cerococcids form a thick, waxy test that encloses 
the body of the female and serves as an ovisac. The ovisac of cerococcids is 
generally rougher than the sac of falsepit scales and has a crawler exit hole that 
protrudes posteriorly. This family contains eight species in the genus Cerococcus in 
North America. Comprehensive studies of the genus have been published (52/7, 
616;690;"7 11): 
Cerococcus parrotti (Hunter), the Parrott scale, is apparently indigenous to 
North America and is reported in Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, New 
Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Virginia in the East. Hosts include maple, bumelia, 
pecan, eastern hophornbean, persimmon, sweetgum, hackberry, hawthorn, 
sassafras, mahonia, basswood, elm, and buckeye. This species is found in natural 
and ornamental habitats. The test of adult females is oval, convex, grayish brown, 
brownish red, or yellowish brown, and has medial, mediolateral, and lateral 
longitudinal rows of conspicuous projections. The male test is smooth and narrow. 
Parrott scale has one generation per year and overwinters as eggs in the tests in 
Virginia (6/6). First instars appear in early to mid-May, and adults are present in 
late July. This species feeds on twigs, stems, and trunks of its host. It is apparently 
not an economic species. Four species of hymenopterous parasites have been 
reported as associated with this scale insect. 
Cerococcus kalmiae (Cockerell) attacks mountain-laurel, azalea, camellia, 
mountain-ash, and persimmon in Georgia, Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts, 
Ohio, and Pennsylvania. 
Family Asterolecaniidae 
Pit Scales 
This family is a diverse aggregation of scale species that occur in all zoo- 
geographic regions of the world. The most commonly encountered genus, As- 
terolecanium, contains several eastern forest pests. The adult females of this genus 
produce a thin, waxy test that covers the body. Many species produce a pit on the 
host as they feed. The family contains 19 species in 4 genera in the United States 
(1045). 
Three species of Asterolecanium occur on oaks in eastern forests. Because these 
species are similar in distribution patterns, field characteristics, and life histories, 
they are treated together. The species are the golden oak scale, A. variolosum 
(Ratzeburg), A. minus Lindinger, and A. quercicola (Bouché). These species may 
be found together on the same tree wherever oaks occur in the United States. The 
adult female is covered by a translucent greenish-yellow or brownish test that bears 
a similarly colored or whitish, waxy fringe around its margin. The test is usually 
slightly longer than it is wide and encloses the body of the female. Young adult 
females are yellow with a dark-brown streak around the body. As the adults age, 
they turn a uniform brown. 
These three species of oak scales have one generation per year and overwinter as 
adult females. Oviposition occurs in late spring and early summer. During egg 
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