Predation by Halmus chalybeus (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) on Ceroplastes destructor and C. sinensis (Hemiptera: Coccidae: Ceroplastinae) Infesting Citrus in Northland, New Zealand

Predation by Halmus chalybeus (steelblue ladybird) on two species of wax scale was studied on citrus orchards in Northland, New Zealand. Field experiments using an exclusion technique of enclosing citrus branches in bags, found that larval and adult H. chalybeus preyed on first and second instars of both Ceroplastes destructor (white wax scale) and C. sinensis (Chinese wax scale), but not third instar C. destructor. Third instar C. sinensis and adults of both species were not tested but are rarely, if ever, attacked by H. chalybeus. The sampling of scale and ladybird populations and field experiments showed that few scales of either species survived past the second instar stage where H. chalybeus was numerous. The feeding rate of H. chalybeus on settled first and second instar scales was estimated inside bagged branches. Adults consumed on average 15.6 C. destructor and 13.3 C. sinensis per day per ladybird, while larvae ate 9.7 C. destructor per day. These feeding rates accounted for the experimental reduction of scale populations. H. chalybeus is a useful natural enemy for the control of C. destructor and C. sinensis when its activity is not disrupted by pesticides.