Asterolecanium

Asterolecanium is a genus of pit scale insects.[2] Asterolecanium is distributed worldwide: species have been found in each of the six biogeographic realms, and nearly all of their respective subregions.[3]

Asterolecanium
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hemiptera
Suborder:	Sternorrhyncha
Family:	Asterolecaniidae
Genus:	Asterolecanium Targioni-tozzetti, 1868
Species[1]
See text

Many species of Asterolecanium are destructive to crops and other plants of economic importance such as bamboo and oak, and are therefore considered pests.[4] Asterolecanium species have been found on at least 37 plant families, most prominently Gramineae (grasses), Palmae (palm trees), and Fagaceae (beech trees).[3] Some species prefer a single host, while others feed on multiple host species. Some feed only on a single part of a plant, such as leaves or stems, while others infest the whole plant. Some create pits in their hosts, depending on the susceptibility of the host plant to damage.[3]