A 365 rarity

I had some pretty good shots of carnivorous plants from the greenhouse, but this critter is a rarity: a mealybug (family “Pseudococcidae,” with 6 genera according to BugGuide.net).

This is definitely a macro shot: “The typical female mealybug is 1/16 to 1/8 inch long with a white, waxy, oval body and functional legs. Some species are up to ¼ inch long. Males are much smaller, usually winged, and seldom seen” (Missouri Botanical Garden). The Missouri Botanical Garden has a nice information page on mealybugs: http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/help-for-the-home-gardener/advice-tips-resources/pests-and-problems/insects/mealybugs/mealybugs-outdoors.aspx

Taxonomically:
» Insects (class Insecta)
»» True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies (order Hemiptera)
»»» Plant-parasitic Hemipterans (suborder Sternorrhyncha)
»»»» Scales and Mealybugs (superfamily Coccoidea)
»»»»» Mealybugs (family Pseudococcidae)

Submitted to BugGuide; http://bugguide.net/node/view/1019185

Photo taken in SIUC Plant Biology Greenhouse, http://www.plantbiology.siu.edu/facilities/plant-biology-facilities/greenhouse/index.php

1 year ago (“Sunset over Cedar Lake”): http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2013-10-28
2 years ago (“Not a daisy!”): http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2012-10-28
3 years ago (“Autumn bubbles”): http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2011-10-28

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