Putnam's Cicada vs Cottony Cushion Scale
Side-by-side species comparison
| Attribute | Putnam's Cicada | Cottony Cushion Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Platypedia putnami | Icerya purchasi |
| Order | Hemiptera | Hemiptera |
| Family | Cicadidae | Monophlebidae |
| Size | 18-25 mm | 5-8 mm including egg sac |
| Habitat | Woodlands | Orchards |
| Diet | Sap Feeders | Wood Feeders |
| Regions | North America | Originally Australia, now cosmopolitan |
| Conservation | Least Concern | Least Concern |
Putnam's Cicada
A small, dark cicada found in arid pinyon-juniper woodlands of the western US. It produces quiet clicks rather than the loud buzzing of typical cicadas.
Did You Know?
Instead of singing, males attract females by tapping their wings together to produce soft clicking sounds.
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.