Control of pine bast scale in China [Matsucoccus matsumurae]

The pine bast scale, Matsucoccus matsumurae is an economically important pest throughout east-central China. It probably is the same as Matsucoccus resinosae , which attacks red pine (Pinus resinosa ) in the northeastern United States. The Chinese Ministry of Forestry has organized an intensive control effort which integrates biological, chemical, regulatory, and silvicultral methods. The most effective predators include several ladybird beetles, an anthocorid bug, and a mite, but rearing and release are still in experimental stages. Insecticides are applied by smoke, spray, or injection when scale densities necessitate their use. Attacks of the scale are most frequent in dense monocultures, on northern slopes, and in stands at middle or low elevations. Knowledge developed in China may prove applicable in the United States, and the two nations might profitably cooperate in research.