The cochineal ( KOTCH-in-EEL, -eel, US also KOH-chin-EEL, -eel; Dactylopius coccus) is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha, from which the natural dye carmine is derived. A primarily sessile parasite native to tropical and subtropical South America through North America (Mexico and the Southwest United States), this insect lives on cacti in the genus Opuntia, feeding on plant moisture and nutrients.
The cochineal ( KOTCH-in-EEL, -eel, US also KOH-chin-EEL, -eel; Dactylopius coccus) is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha, from which the natural dye carmine is derived. A primarily sessile parasite native to tropical and subtropical South America through North America (Mexico and the Southwest United States), this insect lives on cacti in the genus Opuntia, feeding on plant moisture and nutrients.
Source: Wikipedia "Cochineal" · CC BY-SA 4.0
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