Coccids

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Small sap-sucking scale insects belonging to the family Coccidae, many of which are agricultural pests of plants
2. Tiny insects in the superfamily Coccoidea that feed on plant sap and often secrete protective waxy coverings
3. Members of the scale insect family Coccidae, including cochineal and various greenhouse and orchard pests

Etymology: Coccids are the plural of "coccid," the name for members of the insect family Coccidae, the sap-sucking scale insects. The singular is built on the genus name "Coccus," which was taken from the Greek "kokkos," meaning a berry or seed. Early naturalists gave the name because some of these insects, particularly the cochineal species, look like small round seeds or berries stuck to a plant. The family name carries the same sense as its genus. Scale insects spend most of their adult lives fixed to a stem or leaf under a hard, shell-like covering, so to a casual observer they resemble tiny hard seeds rather than animals. The "-id" ending marks membership in a zoological family, a pattern used across insect taxonomy.