Douglass R. Miller and John A. Davidson
Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY
2005; 442pp.
Price: $99.95
ISBN 0-8014-4279-6
 

In Armored Scale Insect Pests of Trees and Shrubs, Miller and Davidson have developed a summary of the biology, systematics, taxonomy, distribution, and economic importance of the more significant armored scale pests of ornamentals and shrubs that will be a standard reference for years to come. The book begins with a fairly comprehensive table of contents, which makes finding information on the included taxa easy.  The authors state in the preface that their objectives were to produce a book that can serve to identify and improve the field recognition of economically important armored scales; provide an understanding of their biology, importance, and distribution; aid in the control of damaging species; provide the opportunity to obtain additional information on the species through the selected references; and provide an appreciation for the biodiversity and adaptability of this unique group of insects in the United States. They include an extensive acknowledgment listing of those who have contributed to the development of this book.  Their objectives are admirably accomplished in this book.

The main portion of the book is arranged in four primary sections that include an introduction, a key to slide-mounted adult females, a field key, and the treatment of the armored scale species. 

The first section (19 pages) gives an excellent overview of the biology and development of the armored scales. This introductory section is arranged into subsections or units consisting of information on the biology, ecology, management, economic importance, morphology (including a glossary of common terms), and methods for identifying adult females in the family.  The authors also highlight and give examples of the various control methods used against the pest species, with an emphasis on the use of biological control. Excellent line-drawn illustrations and color photographs clarify the content of this section for the reader.

The second section consists of a comprehensive key to slide-mounted adult females based on morphological characteristics that require a microscope to discern.  The key is well designed; some taxa appear in two or more couplets to address the potential variation found among some species. All characters used in the keys are illustrated by line-drawn illustrations and color photographs.

In the third section, the authors use their vast knowledge of the armored scales to develop a useful field key that includes species most often responsible for causing economic damage to host plants.  The field key is designed to help identify the species based on factors such as appearance, feeding location, host plant, and known distribution. Within the species couplet, the authors refer to the plate where the reader may view photographs of the species on the host plant.

The fourth section includes the individual treatments of 110 species in the subfamilies Diaspininae and Aspidiotinae.  These species constitute the most common armored scale insect pests of ornamental trees and shrubs.  The authors provide not only taxonomic information for the identification and affinities of the various species, but valuable information on their hosts, distribution, biology, economic importance, and selected references.  They give a comprehensive coverage of the external morphological characters of each of the 110 species treated, representing 46 genera. The authors introduce the species with their scientific and common names followed by a list of synonyms. For identifying the species in the field, they give a brief diagnosis of the species’ appearance with reference to corresponding photographs. They include a morphological description based on slide-mounted females, followed by information on the affinities, hosts, distribution, biology, economic importance, and selected references for each species.

The illustrations and photographs are detailed and of excellent quality.  Five comprehensive line-drawn illustrations clarify the general external morphology and development for the armored scale species treated. An additional 113 illustrations of the 110 species are included.  The authors include two illustrations for three of the species to depict the morphological variations that may be present in each.   Particularly helpful is the consolidation and arrangement of the written and pictorial information for the species, which provide the reader relevant information on the species for identification and control.

The book includes a references cited section and indices to the host plants and the natural enemies of the armored scales.  Their arrangement provides an efficient means for the reader to obtain information on a specific subject or species.

Miller and Davidson are to be congratulated for undertaking this great challenge, and for their tenacity over the past two decades in assimilating all the components into an informative and usable work.  This book will be an indispensable reference source for those who wish to study the armored scale insect fauna as well as for those with the objective to control outbreaks of armored scale pests in the United States.  I strongly recommend this book to those interested in the scale insects, as well as to those interested in protecting ornamentals and shrubs from damage by the armored scales.

 Paris Lambdin
Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology
The University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996
plambdin@utk.edu
American Entomologist
Vol. 53, No. 2, Summer 2007