Checklist of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Sternorrhyncha: Coccomorpha) of New Caledonia

We provide an up-to-date catalogue of the Coccomorpha Rubsaamen, 1899 of New Caledonia based on studies of collected and curated specimens and on the literature. One hundred and eighteen species (118) in ten families have been recorded to date, in 70 genera. Five of the genera (7.2%) are endemic, belonging to Asterolecaniidae Berlese, 1898 (Oacoccus Williams, 2007), Eriococcidae Cockerell, 1899 (Chazeauana Matile-Ferrero, 1988, Choneochiton Hodgson, 2014) and Monophlebidae Maskell, 1880 (Insulococcus Bhatti, 1991, Tessarobelus Montrouzier, 1864). Twenty-nine (29) species are endemic to New Caledonia, giving a rate of endemism of 24.6%. Most of the species are apparently human-assisted introductions. We provide here first records from New Caledonia for ten (10) species: Aulacaspis rosarum Borchsenius, 1858; Chrysomphalus pinnulifer (Maskell, 1891); Diaspis echinocacti (Bouche, 1833); Fiorinia phantasma (Cockerell & Robinson, 1915); Labidaspis myersi Green, 1929; Palmicultor browni (Williams, 1960); Poliaspoides formosana (Takahashi, 1930); Pseudococcus gilbertensis Beardsley, 1966; Pseudococcus orchidicola Takahashi, 1939 and Rhizoecus cacticans (Hambleton, 1946). Despite two introduction attempts for the biological control of weedy cactus, Hypogeococcus festerianus (Lizer y Trelles, 1942) is still considered absent from New Caledonia. Literature records of five species are shown to be erroneous: Dactylopius tomentosus (Lamarck, 1801); Dysmicoccus cocotis (Maskell, 1890); Lindingaspis buxtoni (Laing, 1927); Nipaecoccus filamentosus (Cockerell, 1893) and Clavaspis herculeana (Cockerell & Hadden, in Doane & Hadden, 1909), which are therefore considered absent from New Caledonia.