Occurrence of Colloeneis on Diaspis echinocacti in Alagoas, Brazil

Abstract

The occurrence of Calloeneis sp. (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) predator insect, was observed for the first time in the state of Alagoas, Brazil, in both larval and adult stages, through a survey for natural enemies of the cochineal insect ("cochonilha"), a forage palm tree parasite, Diaspis echinocacti (Bouché, 1833). lIs identification was made by the Centro de Identificação de Insetos Fitófagos (CIIF) of the Federal University of Paraná, Brazil.