Diversity and Distribution Patterns of Scale Insects in China

Scale insects are one of the most fascinating and unusual types of organisms on Earth. Many species have been found in China, but the diversity and distribution patterns of Chinese scale insects are not well understood. To evaluate the diversity and distribution of scale insects in China, we compiled geographic distribution data from museum specimens and published literature and plotted these data using a Geographical Information System. Distribution centers of scale insects were identified by counting the number of species in each grid cell. Values were extracted from each environmental data set from each point and then the relationships between the distribution of scale insects and environment variables were explored using principal component analysis. There are 1,186 species of scale insects recorded in China belonging to 16 recognized families with an overall endemism of scale insect species of ∼48%. However, species-description accumulation curves of scale insects suggest that a full inventory of these taxa is far from complete. None of the species accumulation curves yet drawn have reached an asymptote, indicating that current sampling procedures are still not sufficiently intensive to capture most species present within each cell. Results suggest that the number of identified species of scale insects in China is underestimated by previous inventories, and their distribution is governed by complex ecological factors. Furthermore, it was confirmed that climate is the predominant environmental determinants affecting the distribution and diversity patterns of scale insects in China.