Query Descriptions

This query will locate the currently accepted valid (i.e., correct) name of any scale insect in the database. For example if you wish to know the correct name of Opisthoscelis globosa, you type Opisthoscelis in the genus field and globosa in the species field. If you know the family you also can enter the family name, but it isn't necessary. You will receive a reply with the correct name. In this case it will say that Opisthoscelis globosa Rübsaamen (Family Eriococcidae) is the valid name. The valid name query output also includes any homonyms and misidentifications of the entered name. Because there is a homonym of Opisthoscelis globosa, in this case you will also be given the information that "another species once had the same name Opisthoscelis globosa Froggatt . . . and its valid name is Opisthoscelis rubsaameni." Type information for both species is given to help you determine which of the two correct names refers to your entered name. You can click on Opisthoscelis rubsaameni to retrieve the valid name output of that species if you so wish.

Valid subgenera are unusual in the Coccoidea, but there are a few examples, such as Kerria (Chamberliniella) and Kerria (Kerria). You will find a subgenus field on the initial "Valid Name and Catalogue" screen. Use of this field is optional except if you want information pertinent to the subgenus. For example, if you wish to find the correct name of Kerria (Chamberlinia) you enter Kerria in the genus field and Chamberlinia in the subgenus field. Hit enter and the response is "Kerria (Chamberlinia) Varshney (Family Kerriidae) is a junior homonym and its valid name is Kerria (Chamberliniella)." You can obtain information on a valid subgenus by either putting just the generic name in the genus field or putting the generic and subgeneric names in the appropriate fields. The output will be a complete list of all generic and subgeneric synonymies. Use of the subgenus field is strictly optional when locating the valid name of a species of subspecies. For example if you wish to know the valid name of Kerria (Chamberliniella) javana you can either enter Kerria in the genus field and Chamberlinia in the subgenus field and javana in the species field or you can ignore the subgenus field altogether and enter Kerria in the genus field and javana in the species field and be given the same valid name, i.e., "Kerria javana (Chamberlin) (Family Kerriidae) is the valid name." If you choose to go to the catalogue, click on the catalogue name (Kerria javana) and you will be given a complete catalogue for "Kerria (Chamberliniella) javana".

Below the correct name statement are three or four options to produce a taxonomic catalogue of the subspecies, or of the species (including all subspecies), or of the genus (including all subgenera), or of all of the species in the genus. The output will be a catalogue that includes the following sections: Remarks (including systematics, structure, biology, economic importance and control, or general), Distribution, Associations (hosts), Keys (references to any time that the species or genus was used in a key), Citations, Synonymy, and Common Names (see Catalogue Output for a more detailed explanation of information included in each section). To complete the catalogue with a listing of full references, you must also do a References for a Scale query.

Click on this selection and you will be given a screen that allows you to input up to five words in a common name. If, for example, you require information on the woolly cactus scale, but do not know the valid scientific name, you would input "woolly" in the first field, "cactus" in the second, and "scale" in the third. The results would be a table telling you that the species that you are interested in is in the Eriococcidae and its valid name is Eriococcus coccineus and would provide a hot-linked validation source. If you did not know the entire common name or didn't know the correct spelling you could submit part of the name, e.g., wool, and be given the common name and associated scientific name of all the scales with "wool" in the common name. You could then see a catalogue of the species desired by clicking on the hot-linked species epithet.

This query is designed to find all species and subspecies epithets with a designated string of letters. For example, if you wish to know all of the species and subspecies names in the Coccoidea with the string of letters "danzig" you would simply enter that combination of letters in the "String of letters" field, leave the "Scale Family" field with the default "All" and submit a query. The output for this query is a table listing the "Family," "Genus," "Species," "Subspecies," and "Status Code" of all species/subspecies epithets that contain the string "danzig" as shown below:

Family	Genus	Species	Subspecies	Status Code
Eriococcidae	Acanthococcus	danzigae		replacement name
Pseudococcidae	Chnaurococcus	danzigae		valid species/subspecies name
Pseudococcidae	Heliococcus	danzigae		valid species/subspecies name

In order to obtain the currently accepted genus and species for each species/subspecies name given in the results table, it is necessary to look at the catalogue of the species. You can view the catalog by clicking on the hot linked species epithet in the table. IT IS IMPORTANT TO DO THIS SINCE THE CURRENTLY ACCEPTED COMBINATION OF GENUS AND SPECIES MAY BE DIFFERENT FROM THAT LISTED IN THE RESULTS TABLE. For example, in the results table for the query "danzig" we were given Acanthococcus danzigae as the valid species/subspecies name. If you click on the hot linked "danzigae" you will be given a catalogue for "Eriococcus danzigae," which is the currently accepted combination of genus and species for this species, not Acanthococcus danzigae.

Note that it was unnecessary to put in the entire epithet. It would have been possible to enter "dan" in the "String of letters" field to receive an answer including all three "danzigae" epithets and 19 other species/subspecies epithets including goiDANichi, floriDANa, and DANielaferreroae. Also note that the string of letters does not have to be at the beginning of the word. It also is possible to do a query for all species/subspecies epithets that contain the letter "d." Such a query provides a table of over 900 names; a query for "e" gives over 3,000 species/subspecies names. You also could restrict your query to one family; for example, all of the names with the string "kosz" in the Pseudococcidae. This is done by selecting "Pseudococcidae" from the pick list of families for the "Scale Family" field and entering "kosz" in the "String of letters" field. You would receive a table containing 3 species epithets. The "Status Code" part of the table simply indicates the status of the name that is listed in the results table, e.g., "valid species/subspecies name," "junior synonym," "misspelling of species epithet," "nomen nudum that is unplaced," "replacement name," etc.

This query allows you to find all of the hosts that have been recorded for a particular species of scale. First click on "Hosts of a Scale". On the next screen you will first need to choose the correct family from a pull down pick list (in our example it is Eriococcidae); fill in the Scale Genus field (e.g., Eriococcus) and the Scale Species field (e.g., euphorbiae). If you click on the "Submit Query" button you will be given a table listing the family, genus, and species of the hosts and a validation source (a reference where the host record was published). The validation source is hot linked so that you can retrieve the complete reference and the associated annotated notes if you choose.

Click on this selection and you will be given a screen that requires you to choose a family and enter the valid genus and species. The last field, Origin Status, let you chose "Invasive" or "Native". If one of these is selected, ONLY records with that status will be returned to you. Click on the "Submit Query" button and you will receive a table that includes the biogeographic region, country, subunit (state or province), origin status, and validation source. As in the previous query, the validation source is hot linked to the complete reference and notes.

Click on this choice and you will be given a screen that requires you to choose a family and enter the valid genus and species in the appropriate blank field. You can limit the time frame that you wish to query by filling in the begin date and end date fields. If you leave the end date blank, the default is the current year. When this is done you will receive a list of all of the references that cite the selected valid species or genus. This query is sometimes slow in producing a product so be patient.

Click on this choice and you will be given a screen that requires you to either choose a family alone, or choose a family and enter a genus in that family. When you have entered your choice you will receive a check list in a table that includes columns of data with the headings: Genus, Species, Subspecies, and Author (of the species). The name of the species is hot linked, so that if you click on any of the listed species you will be given a complete catalogue of that species.

This query allows you to see all of the names that have been used for the genus, species, or subspecies taxon that you have selected including the valid name, change of combination, junior synonyms, misidentifications, and others. You will need to select a family from the pick list by clicking on the arrow to the right of the family field, and enter a genus, or a genus and species, or a genus, species, and subspecies. When the "submit query" button is clicked, you will be given the nomenclature portion of the catalogue for the taxon requested. Note: The output from this query is actually the entire catalogue entry for the genus, genus/species, or genus/species/subspecies taxon that you have selected. Your browser will be positioned at the nomenclature section of the catalogue.

There are five different remarks for a scale queries that you can perform: Systematics, Structure, Biology, Economic Importance and Control, and General. All of these have similar query screens. After you pick which type of remarks you want to see, you will be given a screen that requires you to choose a family from a pull down pick list and enter a genus and species. Hit the "Submit Query" button and you are presented with the remarks for the species that you selected and the type of remarks that you selected.

This is a powerful query, but is a bit complicated. Click on this selection and you will be given a screen with the option of entering from one to five words that you would like to search for in the article title, journal title, or associated annotations of the references. You also have the opportunity to limit the search with the last name of an author and the begin and end year of publication. Thus, if you fill in the first word field with "apple" and submit a query, you will be given a list of approximately 115 references and the associated annotations. Several of these will have hits on the word "pineapple". If you wish to retrieve only the apple references, putting a space before the word will assure that this is the case. If this query "_apple" is submitted, you will receive approximately 80 hits. Adding new words in the word fields will restrict the number of hits. Please be aware that this query is case sensitive, that is if you want all of the papers with apple in them, you must do separate searches with "_Apple" and "_apple". A way around this problem is to delete the first letter of the word. For example, if you wanted all of the papers on mealybugs enter "ealybug" in the Word 1 field and you will receive over 700 references.

This query could also be used to find a missing reference. For example, if you knew that a reference by Cockerell was published on sugar cane in the Journal of the Trinidad Field Naturalist's Club but you did not have the title or year of the article, you could simply enter "cane", "Trinidad", and "Naturalist" in the word fields and enter "Cockerell" in the author field. The query will return publications by Cockerell with cane in the article title and Journal of the Trinidad Field Naturalist's Club in the journal title.

This is a powerful query, but is a bit complicated. Click on this selection and you will be given a screen with the option of entering from one to five words that you would like to search for in the remarks fields (systematic, structure, biology, economic, and general). You also have the opportunity to limit the search to a specific family. Thus, if you fill in the first word field with "apple" and submit a query, you will be given a list of approximately eight scales in two different families. Several of these will have hits on the word "pineapple". If you wish to retrieve only the apple references, putting a space before the word will assure that this is the case. If this query "_apple" is submitted, you will receive only six hits. Adding new words in the word fields will restrict the number of hits. Please be aware that this query is case sensitive, that is if you want all of the scales with apple in their remarks, you must do separate searches with "_Apple" and "_apple". A way around this problem is to delete the first letter of the word. For example, if you wanted all of the scales with the word mealybug in the remarks, enter "ealybug" in the Word 1 field and you will receive 68 scale names.

Click on this query and you will be given a screen that allows entry of family, genus, and species of a scale host, natural enemy or associate. Enter any combination of the family alone; family and genus; family, genus and species; genus and species; or genus alone. For example, you could search for all scales associated with Crematogaster ants by simply entering "Crematogaster" in the Genus field. You could search for all the scales on Quercus alba by entering "Quercus" in the Genus field and "alba" in the Species field. You could search for all the scales that are fed on by Coccinellidae by entering "Coccinellidae" in the Family field.

You can also limit the scope of the query by restricting it to a specified scale family and/or genus. You can choose a scale family alone or a scale family and a valid generic name. For example, if you enter "Nothofagus" in the Host, Enemy or Associate Genus field, "dombeyi" in the Host, Enemy or Associate Species field, select Eriococcidae for the Scale family, and enter "Chilecoccus" in the Scale Genus field, you will be given a table including two species of Chilecoccus that are reported on Nothofagus dombeyi. The resulting table has column headings for: Scale Family, Genus, Species, Subspecies, Author (of the scale species), and Validation Source (reference where the host record was published). The validation source is hot linked so that you can retrieve the complete reference and associated annotations that describe the contents of the publication. The species name is hot linked so that you can produce a complete catalogue of the selected scale species.

This query is implemented using a series of screens. When you click on this selection, the first screen shown is the "Find Scales in a Specified Region" query screen. From this screen, you can pick a region by clicking on the pick list arrow and then do one of the following:

• Click on "Pick Country" to see a list of countries for the displayed region, or
• Click on "Submit Query" to show all the scales found in the displayed region. If you want the countries and subunits included in the output, select "Yes" under "Show detail" before clicking on "Submit Query".

Please be aware that region queries will take a long time to complete.

If you clicked on "Pick Country", the next screen you will see is the "Find Scales in a Specified Country" query screen. From this screen, you can pick a country by clicking on the pick list arrow and then do one of the following:

• Click on "Pick Region" to pick another region, or
• Click on "Pick Subunit" to see a list of subunits for the displayed region and country, or
• Click on "Submit Query" to show all the scales found in the displayed region and country. If you want the subunits included in the output, select "Yes" under "Show detail" before clicking on "Submit Query".

If you clicked on "Pick Subunit", the next screen you will see is the "Find Scales in a Specified Subunit" query screen. From this screen, you can pick a subunit by clicking on the pick list arrow and then do one of the following:

• Click on "Pick Region" to pick a another region, or
• Click on "Pick Country" to pick a different country for the displayed region, or
• Click on "Submit Query" to show all the scales found in the displayed region, country, and subunit.

If the displayed country doesn't have any subunits, you can run a query for the displayed region and country without having to go back a screen by clicking on "Submit Query".

The geographic search can be restricted in its scope by filling in additional fields. Add a host-family name, or a host-family and host-genus name, or a host-family and host-genus and host-species name, or a host-genus name alone and obtain a list of scales that occur in the selected geographic area on the chosen host. It is also possible to search by selecting a scale-family name to restrict the search to a particular scale family. Thus, you could do a search for all of the Pseudococcidae on Artemesia in California (Nearctic, United States of America).

For all of the above scenarios, you have the option of restricting your query to only "Invasive" or "Native" records. Do this by selecting either one from the Origin Status picklist.

NOTE: Parts of China and Mexico occur in two different Zoogeographic Regions. In order to make a complete list of the taxa that occur in these countries it is necessary to do queries under each of the two regions where they occur. For example, for Mexico it is necessary to undertake two separate queries selecting Neotropical and Nearctic in the "Regions" field of your queries and Mexico in the "Country" field.

This query was included so that you could find all of the scale-insect literature published between two dates. Click on this choice and you will be given a screen that allows entry of a Begin Date and End Date. If the latter is not filled in, the default is the current year. You can select no more than a 10-year span. The result is a list of all of the references in the database between the years selected. The output is the complete reference and the associated annotations.

Click on this selection and you will be given: a screen that asks you to enter the last name of an author; the option of limiting the request to a specified time frame such as 1942 to 1998; and the option of checking for alternate spellings of the submitted author's name. When entering the author's last name be certain that the capitals, hyphens, and diacritical marks are in the correct place. Please note that if you do not know how the name is spelled in ScaleNet, you can ascertain this by clicking on the "Alternate author spellings" link at the bottom of the screen. This action will give you a table that includes all of the spellings used in ScaleNet (and then some) and all alternatives that we could imagine. In a few cases, we have used more than one spelling of an author's name in ScaleNet such as B.L.Young and P.L. Yang (these are the same person).

Another way to find all of the publications written by an author is to enter a shortened string of letters in the "Author (last name)" field that you believe will be part of any alternate spelling of the last name. For example, if you wanted all of the papers published by Danzig, but you weren't sure of the transliteration of her name in ScaleNet but knew that it could be spelled Danzig, Dansig, or Dantsig, you could enter "Dan" in the last name field. The results of the query would include a list of references encompassing all of those written by Danzig but also would give references by other authors with the "Dan" string such as McDaniel or Daneel.

If you wish to have the program search for all spellings of an author's last name, click the "Yes" button for "Check alternate author spellings?". The output for this query is a list of references by the author selected. You will note that if alternate spellings were found, the results of the query will provide a list of references that encompasses all of the alternate spellings of the name. For example, if you enter "Dantsig" in the last name field, you will be given a complete list of all of the publications of Danzig including those spelled in any of the alternative forms and you will be given a list of the alternative forms of the name.

Please note that although we have provided a mechanism for allowing entry of diacritical marks (click on the "using diacriticals" link at the bottom of the query page), it is possible to avoid these by using the "Yes" button for "Check alternate author spellings?". For example, if you are interested in obtaining a list of all of the references by Ferenc Kozár, you can enter "Kozar" and the results are a complete list of his publications including those with and without the "á" in his name. In some cases, browsers have difficulty dealing with certain diacritical marks.

In this query you also are given the option of including begin and end dates. If this isn't included, the default is to provide all publications of the author, including junior-authored papers.

Click on this selection and you will be given: a screen that asks you to enter the last name of an author; the option of limiting the request to a specified time frame such as 1942 to 1998; the type of scales described (i.e., genus, species, or subspecies); and the option of checking for alternate spellings of the submitted author's name. When entering the author's last name be certain that the capitals, hyphens, and diacritical marks are in the correct place. Please note that if you do not know how the name is spelled in ScaleNet, you can ascertain this by clicking on the "Alternate author spellings" link at the bottom of the screen. This action will give you a table that includes all of the spellings used in ScaleNet (and then some) and all alternatives that we could imagine. In a few cases, we have used more than one spelling of an author's name in ScaleNet such as B.L.Young and P.L. Yang (these are the same person).

Another way to find all of the scales described by an author is to enter a shortened string of letters in the "Author (last name)" field that you believe will be part of any alternate spelling of the last name. For example, if you wanted all of the scales described by Danzig, but you weren't sure of the transliteration of her name in ScaleNet but knew that it could be spelled Danzig, Dansig, or Dantsig, you could enter "Dan" in the last name field. The results of the query would include a list of scales described by Danzig but also would give scales described by other authors with the "Dan" string such as McDaniel or Daneel.

If you wish to have the program search for all spellings of an author's last name, click the "Yes" button for "Check alternate author spellings?". The output for this query is a list of the scales described by the author. The list includes the cited name, year, current status of the name, and the valid name. You will note that if alternate spellings were found, the results of the query will provide a list of described scales that encompasses all of the alternate spellings of the name. For example, if you enter "Dantsig" in the last name field, you will be given a complete list of all of the scales described by Danzig including those spelled in any of the alternative forms and you will be given a list of the alternative forms of the name.

Please note that although we have provided a mechanism for allowing entry of diacritical marks (click on the "using diacriticals" link at the bottom of the query page), it is possible to avoid these by using the "Yes" button for "Check alternate author spellings?". For example, if you are interested in obtaining a list of all of the scales described by Ferenc Kozár, you can enter "Kozar" and the results are a complete list of scales described by him including those with and without the "á" in his name. In some cases, browsers have difficulty dealing with certain diacritical marks.

In this query you also are given the option of including begin and end dates. If this isn't included, the default is to provide all scales described by the author.

Click on this selection and the next screen gives the option of translating a citation code. Citation codes are the unique BASIS derived codes that identify individual references. For example the citation code for Cockerell and Bueker 1930a is CockerBu1930a. These codes are given as output in the catalogues and in several of the queries and the identified reference is not always evident. The purpose of this query is to provide a mechanism to determine the correct reference from a citation code. If you find a citation code that is not hot linked and want to know the complete reference, you can either use the Internet browser's Copy function or <Control> C. Then go to the "Reference for a Citation Code" selection. When you click on this option the next screen gives a field to enter a citation code, in which case you can "paste" the copied citation code with the Internet browser's Paste function, or <Control> V. Thus, if you enter "CockerBu1930a" in the "Reference for a Citation Code" query you will be given the complete reference and any associate annotations. Please be aware that when entering citation codes, they are case sensitive. That is you must have capital letters in the correct positions. This is another reason for copying and pasting the codes.