REDIA, XCIX, 2016: 163-170 (*) Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs, General Directorate of Forestry, Central Anatolia Forestry Research Institute, Ankara, Turkey (**) Ankara University Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Plant Protection, 06110 Dışkapı, Ankara, Turkey; e-mail: ulgentur@agri.ankara.edu.tr Dostbil Ö., Ülgentürk S. – Bio-ecology of cedar scale insect Torosaspis cedricola (Balachowsky & Alkan) (Hemiptera Diaspididae) in Ankara, Turkey. Lebanon cedar, Cedrus libani A. Rich. (Pinaceae) is a significant tree from the historical, cultural, aesthetic, scientific and economic perspectives. It is presently found primarily in the Taurus Mountains with extensive and magnificent forests. Also, it has been frequently used as ornamental tree in urban areas in Turkey and abroad. Cedar scale, Torosaspis cedricola, (Balachowsky & Alkan) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) is one of the important pests of cedar trees particularly in urban ecosystem. The bio-ecology of T. cedricola on C. libani is examined four localities during the years 2008 and 2009 in Ankara. T. cedricola has two generations in a year and overwinters as mated females. The sex ratio of T. cedricola is changed 1.8:1-4.8:1 (♀:♂) all study areas in both generation and the sex ratio is strongly biased towards female that occur on cedar needles only. The first generation crawlers emerged in late May but the second brood L 1 in late July. Adalia bipunctata (L.), Chilocorus bipustulatus (L.), Exochomus quadripustulatus (L.), Harmonia quadripunctata (Pont) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) and Cybocephalus fodori minor (Endrödy) (Coleoptera: Cybocephalidae) were determined as predator of the scale, while Diaspiniphagus moeris (Walker) (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) was only parasitioid species as natural enemy of T. cedricola. Natural enemies had a negligible effect on populations of T. cedricola in Ankara. KEY WORDS: Cedrus libani, Diaspiniphagus moeris, sex-ratio, damage, Taurus cedar, population dynamics. ÖZLEM DOSTBİL (*) - SELMA ÜLGENTÜRK (**) BIO-ECOLOGY OF CEDAR SCALE INSECT TOROSASPIS CEDRICOLA (BALACHOWSKY & ALKAN) (HEMIPTERA DIASPIDIDAE) IN ANKARA, TURKEY ( 1 ) INTRODUCTION Cedrus libani A.Rich. (Pinaceae) is an evergreen woody plant that typically grows between 500 and 2400 m altitudes (EVCIMEN 1963; SENITZA, 1989). It occurs naturally in the Taurus Mountains of Southern Turkey, in Western Syria and the Lebanon Mountains. Century-long overexploitation has resulted in devastation or degradation of most forests, but small populations of the species survived in a well-preserved state in isolated areas (BOYDAK & ÇALIKOĞLU, 2008; MESSINGER et al., 2015). This kind of distribution and site conditions induce morphological, phenotypical and molecular differences among populations (BILGEN et al., 2012). In the recent literature, C. libani is in most cases divided into subsp. libani in Western Syria and the Lebanon mountain ranges and subsp. stenocoma in Southern Turkey (QIAO et al ., 2007; DAGHER-KHARRAT et al ., 2007; MESSINGER et al., 2015), the latter is also known in Turkey as Taurus cedar or Turkish cedar. The range of cedar forest presently covers about 600,000 ha in Turkey (BILGEN et al., 2012). Because of its adaptability, high survival rate and unique wood properties, extended reforestation attempt with C. libani have been made outside its natural distribution for commercial purposes both in Turkey and other countries (BOYDAK, 2003; MESSENGER et al., 2015). C. libani has been used frequently as ornamental trees in parks, gardens, recreations areas and city forest in Turkey. In addition to – Received 20 September 2016 Accepted 24 October 2016 1 Original scientific contribution presented and discussed at XIV International Symposium on Scale Insect Studies, Catania-Italy, 13-16 June 2016. anthropogenic and climatic impacts, insect pests can have dramatic effects on tree growth and wood production of Turkish cedar especially in case of pest introduction in a novel area. Scale insects are an important group of pest insects on cedar trees. Ceroplastes floridensis Comstock, Coccus hesperidum Linnaeus (Coccidae), Aspidiotus nerii (Bouché), Chionaspis kabyliensis Balachowsky, Dynaspidiotus abieticola (Koroneos), Dynaspidiotus britannicus (Newstead), D. jaapi (Leonardi), Gomez- menoraspis nr. pinicola (Leonardi), Lepidosaphes juniperi Lindinger, Leucaspis pini (Harting), Torosaspis cedricola (Balachowsky & Alkan) (Diaspididae), Marchalina hellenica Gennaidus (Marchalinidae) and Phenacoccus arambourgi (Balachowsky) (Pseudococcidae) were recorded as pests in Turkey (BALACHOWSKY & ALKAN, 1956; SELMI, 1979; ÜLGENTÜRK et al., 2012; ÜLGENTÜRK et al.,. 2013; KAYDAN et al., 2014). D. britannicus was as an important pest on cedar. It overwinters as second nymph stage and is bivoltine on C. libani in Ankara (A YHAN & ÜLGENTÜRK, 2011). Although T. cedricola a major pest in urban cedars, it does not cause serious damage in cedar forests in Turkey (ŞAHIN & ÜLGENTÜRK, 2011). It was described by BALACHOWSKY & ALKAN, (1956) as Acanthomytilus genus (Borchsenius, 1950), but due to on the basis of morphological differences between Acanthomytilus species feeding on woody plants and those feeding on Poaceae, with A. farsianus Balachowsky & Kaussari transferred to the Torosaspis Ülgentürk (ÜLGENTÜRK & KOZÁR, 2011). T. cedricola caused important precocious needle fall and dieback of C. libani, C. atlantica var. glauca, C. deodora where used as ornamentals and in natural cedar forests over most of Turkey (ÇANAKÇIOĞLU, 1977; ÜLGENTÜRK, & TOROS, 1996; ŞAHIN & http://dx.doi.org/10.19263/REDIA-99.16.21