Confirmation of Acutaspis albopicta (Cockerell, 1898) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) in Brazil: occurrence on baru (Dipteryx alata Vogel, Fabaceae), a native Cerrado plant species

Recent research has been shown that Cerrado hosts a high richness of scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) associated with native and exotic plants from different families and botanical species. This work aimed to report for the first time an association of an armored scale insect (Diaspididae), Acutaspis albopicta (Cockerell, 1898), with baru (Dipteryx alata Vogel, Fabaceae), a native tree from Cerrado biome, in Federal District, Brazil. Additionally, this is the first occurrence of this species of Diaspididae in Central Brazil. Acutaspis albopicta was first mentioned in Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, associated with Cocos nucifera (L.) (Arecaceae), but, until now, there was no evidence of its occurrence in the country. In this work, there is a confirmation of A. albopicta in Brazil, and macroscopic and microscopic descriptions and illustrations are presented.