Tea scale is the most serious scale insect on camellia. It attaches to the underside of leaves. Tea scale has an oblong shape with a ridge down the center parallel to the sides. The male is about two-thirds the size of the female. The females vary in color from dark brown or gray to nearly black.
Males are white.
The female lays 10 to 16 eggs, which remain protected under her body until they hatch. In one to three weeks, bright yellow immature forms called crawlers hatch from the eggs. A typical symptom of tea scale infestation is yellow splotches on the upper surface of leaves. With a large infestation, the undersides of the leaves are covered by a cottony mass. Spraying with dormant oil in spring before new growth begins will kill some adults and eggs by smothering them.