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Indian Wax Scale

Ceroplastes ceriferus[3]

Indian wax scale is a non-native soft scale whose mature females are white, rounded wax lumps up to 1/4 inch across that look like wads of gum on the twigs of hollies and other shrubs.[1][2]

Group
Insect
Order
Hemiptera
Family
Coccidae
US records
12 states
Sources
3 cited
Updated
2026-10-16
White, gum-like Indian wax scales on a twig
White, gum-like Indian wax scales on a twig. (c) Steven Joyner, some rights reserved (CC BY) — via iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0
On this page
  1. Identification
  2. Look-alikes
  3. Where it lives
  4. Biology
  5. Damage and signs
  6. Health risk
  7. Control
  8. Related profiles
  9. Common questions
  10. Sources

How to identify it

  • Mature females are rounded to hemispherical white wax covers up to 1/4 inch (6 mm) across, reddish underneath; there are no males.[1][2]
  • Young scales look like cameos, with white wax only partly covering the reddish body; crawlers are rusty red.[1][2]
  • Bees, wasps, hornets and ants foraging in dense shrubs are often a clue, because they are drawn to the scale's honeydew.[1][2]

Look-alikes

Look-alikeHow to tell them apart
Florida wax scaleA related wax scale in the same genus with similar habits.[2]
Other soft scalesLecanium and other soft scales lack the thick white wax dome.[1]

Where it lives

A non-native pest found in Maryland, Georgia and the Southeast on landscape shrubs.[1][2]

US map: public records from 12 states since 1990 (GBIF).

Biology and life cycle

There is one generation a year; adult females overwinter on the bark.[1][2]

Crawlers hatch in early summer, around June in Maryland, about 1,145 degree days, when bottlebrush buckeye blooms and before mimosa flowers.[1][2]

All life stages are found mainly on twigs and small branches.[1][2]

Damage and signs

  • It feeds on plants in 62 families, especially Chinese and Japanese holly, boxwood, euonymus, firethorn, camellia, spirea, flowering quince, barberry and beautyberry.[1][2]
  • Light infestations produce honeydew and sooty mold; heavy or long-lasting ones cause yellowing, leaf drop, lost vigor and branch dieback.[1][2]

Health risk

None to people or pets.[1]

Control

Prevention

From May, check females every one to two weeks to find when eggs hatch, because the crawler window is short.[1][2]

Traps and physical control

Prune out heavily infested twigs and branches.[2]

Pesticides

Spray infested twigs thoroughly with horticultural oil, insecticidal soap or a contact or systemic insecticide while crawlers are present; dormant oil plus systemic or growth-regulating insecticides works best, and large populations may take more than a year.[1][2]

Common questions

What are the white gummy lumps on my holly twigs?
Likely Indian wax scale.[1][2]
When should I spray?
When crawlers hatch in early summer, around June in Maryland.[1][2]
Why are bees and wasps all over my holly?
They may be feeding on honeydew from wax scales.[1][2]

Sources

  1. University of Maryland Extension (Home & Garden Information Center), “Indian Wax Scale (updated September 22, 2026).” extension.umd.edu/resource/indian-wax-scale (accessed 2026-10-16)
  2. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension, “Wax Scales (Japanese, Florida, or Indian wax scale) Ceroplastes spp. (Landscape Pest Management).” extension.uga.edu/programs-services/landscape-pest-management/pests-ornamental/wax-scales-japanese-florida-indian-wax-scale-ceroplastes.html (accessed 2026-10-16)
  3. iNaturalist, “Ceroplastes ceriferus taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/387379 (accessed 2026-10-06)

Updated 2026-10-16. Built from sourced records. Spot an error? Tell us.