The mealybug is pronounced gé jiè.

The mealybug, also known as the great gecko, the immortal toad, and in Taiwan as the great guardian, is mainly found in subtropical regions of Asia near the Tropic of Cancer, including China, Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos. Mealybugs mostly inhabit the cave crevices of overhanging rock cliffs, and individually also reside in tree cavities. The cave gaps are not large, and the body is just large enough to move freely within the cave.

The mealybugs are capable of escaping from their enemies by flicking their tails and growing back afterwards, and will even bite at their enemies or prey when they catch them. The shape of the hole is different, generally the hole is 15-30 centimeters wide, 3-6 centimeters high, the depth varies, some can reach several meters deep. In the wild, they often live alone or in several habitats. Mealybugs like to be dry, and it is difficult to see mealybugs in the low-lying or lower part of rocky mountains.

Habits of Mealybugs

The mealybugs are afraid of cold, heat and rain, and they like to live in rocky gaps in the mountains, in tree holes or on the eaves of the walls, and come out by day and by night, and it is common to see male and female pairs of mealybugs living in pairs. They like to eat live bait and mainly prey on insects. Mealybugs have hibernation habit. When the temperature is lower than 10℃, it dives into the rock crevices at a depth of 3-4m to hibernate. When the temperature rises to 18-20℃ in the following day, the mealybugs will come out of their holes. Dioecious, sexually mature in 3-4 years, spawning can be seen in May-September every year, with June-July as the peak season. Slightly different places due to different climates mealybug eggs hatch in July-August, June-July is the peak season.