Kerria lacca

Kerria lacca
Picture of Kerria Lacca by Harold Maxwell-Lefroy
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Suborder: Sternorrhyncha
Superfamily: Coccoidea
Family: Kerriidae
Genus: Kerria
Species: K. lacca
Binomial name
Kerria lacca
(Kerr, 1782)
Synonyms
  • Coccus lacca Kerr, 1782
  • Coccus ficus Fabricius, 1787
  • Chermes lacca Roxburgh, 1791
  • Carteria lacca Signoret, 1874
  • Lakshadia indica Mahdihassan, 1923
  • Tachardia lacca Chamberlin, 1923
  • Laccifer lacca Cockerell, 1924

Kerria lacca is a species of scale insect of the family Kerriidae. It is most well known as one of the primary species of lac insects; they are raised for the production of lac, a commercially important scarlet substance that is used for dyeing wool and silk,[1] in cosmetics, food glazes, wood finishing varnishes and polishes such as French polish, and as a traditional medicinal drug. Kerria lacca insects inhabit trees in colonies of thousands and secrete the resinous substance.

Product by Kerria Lacca

See also

References

  1. ↑ Wouters, Jan, and Verhecken, André (1989). "The coccid insect dyes: HPLC and computerized diode-array analysis of dyed yarns". Studies in Conservation 34 (4): 189–200. doi:10.1179/sic.1989.34.4.189.