Citricola scale

Citricola scale is a soft scale. Crawlers of the citricola scale appear from June through August. They settle primarily on the underside of leaves, but in severe infestations they also settle on the upper leaf surface and on twigs, rarely on fruit. Young scales are flat and almost translucent; they grow slowly over the course of the summer and fall, molting only once during that period. By November, second-instar scales turn a mottled dark brown color and begin migrating to twigs; this migration peaks in February and March. Once on twigs, they develop faster than they did on leaves and they turn a gray color. By late April, citricola scales molt and mature into the adult female stage. Females lay 1,000 to 1,500 eggs during the time from early May to early August. Eggs hatch after 2 to 3 days and crawlers move to leaves. There is only one generation a year, and there are no males.