350  Nature  and  Structure  of  Cochineal.   { fjgm • 
sects  also  certain  coloring  agents  known  as  "  lac  dyes  "  are  pro- 
duced. China  wax,  the  excretion  of  an  insect  known  as  "  Pela  " 
(Ericerus  pela)  is  also  the  product  of  a  scale  insect  belonging  to 
this  family.  Comstock  4  states  that  there  are  many  species  of  the 
Coccidce  which  excrete  wax  in  considerable  quantity.  While  some 
of  the  members  of  this  family  produce  useful  products,  others  are 
among  the  most  injurious  of  insects.  Some  of  our  citrus  fruit  trees, 
as  the  orange,  are  very  much  injured  by  the  scale  insect  Aspidotus 
aurantii.  The  San  Jose  scale,  causing  serious  damage  to  very  many 
of  our  fruit  trees,  is  also  produced  by  a  scale  insect,  Aspidotus 
perniciosus.5 
The  cochineal  insect  was  first  described  by  Hernandez  in  1651. 
It  is  ordinarily  in  scientific  works  referred  to  as  Coccus  Cacti 
Linne.  In  the  eighth  edition  of  the  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia  the  name 
was  changed  to  Pseudococcus  Cacti  (Linne)  Burmeister.  In  a 
"  Catalogue  of  The  Coccidse  of  the  World,"  Maria  E.  Fernaldo  6 
gives  preference  to  the  name  Dactylopius  Coccus  Costa.  In  Phar- 
macopceial  work  we  are  justified  however  in  using  the  Latin  title 
that  has  been  given  precedent  by  usage,  namely  Coccus  Cacti,  as 
otherwise  we  might  change  the  name  with  each  revision  as  our 
knowledge  of  these  insects  is  extended. 
The  cochineal  insect  feeds  upon  various  species  of  the  Cactacece, 
more  especially  the  Nopal  plant,  Nopalea  (Opuntia)  coccinellifera 
(Mill.)  S.-Dyck,  a  native  of  Mexico  and  Peru.  It  has  spread  into 
other  parts  of  South  and  Central  America  and  has  been  introduced 
into  the  West  Indies,  East  Indies,  Canary  Islands,  Southern  Spain, 
Algeria,  and  is  said  to  be  found  in  Florida  and  California.  Whether 
the  occurrence  in  the  last  two  places  is  accidental  or  with  a  view  of 
developing  the  cochineal  industry  I  cannot  state. 
Cultivation  of  Cochineal. 
The  cultivation  of  cochineal  is  rather  simple  in  a  tropical 
climate,  all  that  is  necessary  is  to  have  the  cochineal  insects  and  the 
proper  cacti.  Senor  Santiago  da  Cruz  e  Goncalves,7  a  surgeon 
established  in  Teneriffe  over  sixty  years  ago  and  who  was  ap- 
pointed by  the  Spanish  Government  to  superintend  the  cultivation 
of  cochineal  in  that  island,  wrote  an  interesting  article  on  "  The 
Cultivation  of  Cochineal."  This  was  translated  with  some  addi- 
tional notes  by  G.  J.  de  Nobrega  in  The  Pharmaceutical  Journal, 
