| Kermes | |
|---|---|
) | |
| Kermes echinatus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Suborder: | Sternorrhyncha |
| Family: | Kermesidae |
| Genus: | Kermes Latreille, 1798 |
| Species | |
| See text | |
Kermes is a genus of scale insects in the order Hemiptera. They feed on the sap of evergreen oaks; the females produce a red dye, also called "kermes", that is the source of natural crimson.[1] The word "kermes" is derived from Persian or Turkish qirmiz or kirmizi (قرمز), "crimson" (both the colour and the dyestuff).[2]
There are some 20 species,[3] including:
- Kermes bacciformis Leonardi, 1908
- Kermes corticalis (Nassonov, 1908)
- Kermes echinatus (Balachowsky, 1953)
- Kermes gibbosus Signoret, 1875
- Kermes ilicis (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Kermes roboris (Fourcroy, 1785)
- Kermes vermilio Planchon, 1864
References
- ^ Naturenet article with images and description of Kermes vermilio and its foodplant
- ^ "Crimson (n.)". Etymology Online. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
- ^ Spodek, Malkie; Ben-Dov, Yair (2012). "Morphology of the first-instar nymph and adult female of Kermes echinatus Balachowsky, with a comparison to K. vermilio Planchon (Hemiptera, Coccoidea, Kermesidae)". ZooKeys. 246: 11–26. doi:10.3897/zookeys.246.3766. ISSN 1313-2970.
External links