cochineal ( /k?t??'ni?l/ koch-i- NEEL or /'k?t??ni?l/ KOCH -i-neel ; Dactylopius coccus ) is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha , from which the crimson -coloured dye carmine is derived. A primarily sessile parasite native to tropical and subtropical South America and Mexico , this insect lives on cacti in