Chionaspis pinifoliae
In 3 days ~10%
Chionaspis pinifoliae, the pine needle scale insect, is a common species of scale insect found on pine, spruce and other conifers across Canada and throughout the United States. The species is particularly persistent on planted spruce in the Prairie Provinces in both rural and urban settings. In heavy populations, the needles may appear to be flecked with white. The insect overwinters in the egg stage under the white covering of the scale. In Saskatchewan, hatching dates vary from late May to late June. In the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States there can be one or two generations per year and the first generation hatches after an average of 210 growing degree-days. The newly hatched “crawlers” disperse, settle on old or new needles and begin scale development. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Pine Needle Scale sighting in Toronto on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 1410th most-seen of the 1689 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Pine Needle Scale in Toronto on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Only Toronto, in our data
Toronto is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Pine Needle Scale sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same order: Hemiptera
The closest relatives of the Pine Needle Scale that you can see in Toronto (order Hemiptera, True Bugs, Hoppers, Aphids, and allies) are European Firebug (about 20%), Eastern Boxelder Bug (about 20%) and Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pine Needle Scale is recorded against all the insects logged in Toronto (7 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.
