Many different species of scale insects can occur on houseplants. Common species in Oklahoma include black scale, hemispherical scale and brown soft scale.
Larval crawlers insert their mouthparts into a leaf and start forming a shell.
They remain there for several molts while losing their legs during the first molt. Live young or eggs are produced under the female's body and are protected by the hard shell. Large scale infestations can deform tender plant parts, and as with mealybugs, aphids, and whiteflies, scales excrete honeydew. Female armored scales do not move about. The male has legs and one pair of wings but lacks mouthparts and, thus, does not feed.