Takahashia japonica
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Takahashia japonica - the string cottony scale - is an insect pest of ornamental- and economic trees in the Coccidae family. It is a pest of quarantine significance in the EPPO area. Takahashia japonica is a highly adaptable pest that attacks a large number of deciduous trees.
Known host plants include trees of the genera Acer, Albizia, Alnus, Celtis, Citrus, Cornus, Cydonia, Diospyros, Juglans, Magnolia, Morus, Parthenocissus, Prunus, Pyrus, Robinia, Sophora and Salix. Adult females are light brown in colour, reaching up to 7 mm in length and 4 mm in width. They produce tubular ring-shaped white waxy oothecae up to 5 cm long. The cottony sacs remain attached to branches even after hatching.
In Croatia, where it is an invasive species, it produces one generation per year. Egg hatching occurs during June. The nymphs then move to the underside of leaves. At the end of summer they return to the host and pupate. Nymphs are dispersed by wind and over longer distances probably through infected plants.
The species is not harmful to humans, but causes significant leaf loss on infested plants. First detected in Italy, in Cerro Maggiore, in 2017 on Morus nigra... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
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More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a String Cottony Scale sighting in Tokyo on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 612th most-seen of the 1013 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a String Cottony Scale in Tokyo on a given day, against under 5% in June to April, the lowest months.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 cities where we can rate String Cottony Scale sightings, Tokyo ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in Milan (Italy, about 30%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the String Cottony Scale is recorded against all the insects logged in Tokyo (12 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
