Malagasy Carpenter Bee vs Cottony Cushion Scale
Side-by-side species comparison
| Attribute | Malagasy Carpenter Bee | Cottony Cushion Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Xylocopa madecassa | Icerya purchasi |
| Order | Hymenoptera | Hemiptera |
| Family | Apidae | Monophlebidae |
| Size | 20-30 mm | 5-8 mm including egg sac |
| Habitat | Woodlands | Orchards |
| Diet | Wood Feeders | Wood Feeders |
| Regions | Madagascar | Originally Australia, now cosmopolitan |
| Conservation | Least Concern | Least Concern |
Malagasy Carpenter Bee
A large, robust black bee with a metallic blue-violet sheen on its wings. It bores nest tunnels into dead wood using its powerful mandibles.
Did You Know?
Despite its intimidating size and loud buzzing, the Malagasy carpenter bee is generally docile and rarely stings humans.
Cottony Cushion Scale
A scale insect with a distinctive white fluted egg sac that devastated California's citrus industry in the 1880s. Its control by vedalia beetles was the first major success of biological pest control.
Did You Know?
The introduction of vedalia ladybirds to control it in 1889 saved the California citrus industry from collapse.