# Cochineal (*Dactylopius coccus*)

Cochineal insects are tiny bugs that live on cacti. They are famous for their bright red color that comes from their bodies. People use them to make natural dyes for coloring fabrics and food.

- **Category:** [Insects](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/insect)
- **Rarity:** Common
- **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low
- **Habitat:** Desert
- **Also known as:** Cochineal Bug, Cochineal Scale

![Cochineal](https://res.cloudinary.com/drieglelr/image/upload/v1771424375/objects/6000.jpg)

## Appearance

The Cochineal is a small, soft-bodied scale insect, typically oval-shaped. Females are purplish-red and covered in a white, powdery wax that makes them look dusty or cottony. They have no wings and short legs.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Animalia
- **Phylum:** Arthropoda
- **Class:** Insecta
- **Order:** Hemiptera
- **Family:** Dactylopiidae
- **Genus:** Dactylopius

## Cochineal, up close

The cochineal (Dactylopius coccus) is a small scale insect that lives on prickly pear cacti and sucks their sap. The wingless adult female is about 6 mm long and dusted with white wax, but her body is packed with carminic acid, a red chemical that puts ants off and gives the dye carmine (E120). Used in Mexico and the Andes long before Europeans arrived, it became one of New Spain’s most valuable exports and is still farmed today, mostly in Peru.

Also called: Cochineal insect, Carmine cochineal, Domesticated cochineal, Cochinilla (Spanish), Grana cochinilla (Spanish).

A tiny cactus bug in a white wax coat, hiding a red dye that has coloured royal cloth, famous paintings and today’s yoghurts. Spin it, tap it, then test yourself.

### Special abilities

- **Red Alert** (0.2–6.2% carminic acid strength that repels ants): Under the wax, a cochineal is soaked in carminic acid. In experiments, ants refused food laced with it, so scientists think it evolved as a chemical defence. [12][13][7][3]
  - In 1980, Thomas Eisner’s team showed that carminic acid is a strong feeding deterrent to ants.
  - Some predators eat cochineals anyway and reuse the acid. Their defensive fluids hold 0.2–6.2% carminic acid, a strength proven to stop ants.
  - It may also protect the insect against germs, but that idea is less tested.
- **Wax Raincoat** (11 species in the family, all wax-coated): A coat of white wax shields the cochineal from rain, drying out and desert heat while it sits still on its cactus. [2][14][1][3]
  - The wax protects the insect from losing water and from rain.
  - In the Sonoran Desert, scientists found that the cottony wax of wild cochineals keeps them cooler than the cactus they sit on: the more wax, the cooler the insect.
  - Ladybird larvae that eat cochineals sometimes hide inside the wax themselves.
- **Sap Sipper** (80–90 days of feeding before a farm harvest): A cochineal pushes its long mouthparts into the cactus pad and drinks sap for the rest of its life. [5][10][2]
  - Cochineals drink from the phloem, the tubes that carry sugary sap around the cactus.
  - On farms, the insects feed for about 80–90 days before they are harvested.
  - Too many cochineals on one plant can drain and kill it.
- **Wind Riders** (≈1 mm crawler length): Newly hatched crawlers are tiny and light. They wander off the mother and can be blown, washed or carried to new cacti. [9]
  - In the cactus cochineal, a close relative, crawlers are 0.83–1.11 mm long and bright red.
  - Wind, water, birds, farm animals and people all help crawlers spread.
  - The crawler is the stage that infests new plants. Once it finds a spot, it settles and stops wandering.
- **Dye Inside** (14–26% of a dried female is carminic acid): X-ray the female and you find the famous red: carminic acid, made by the insect itself. [5][2]
  - In 2017, scientists found the cochineal’s own enzyme that carries out a key step in making carminic acid.
  - About 80,000–100,000 females, collected before they lay eggs, make 1 kg of dye.
  - Mixing the dye with different metals or acids changes the shade, from bright red to purple.
- **Egg Pile** (up to 355 eggs per female (close relative)): A mated female lays hundreds of eggs on her cactus pad, and tiny red crawlers soon hatch from them. [9][2]
  - In the cactus cochineal, a female laid up to 355 eggs at 32 °C.
  - The eggs also contain carminic acid.
  - Farmers place egg-laying females on fresh cactus pads to start a new crop of insects.
- **Crawler to Mum** (64–120 days to grow up): From a red dot smaller than a pinhead to a waxy 6 mm adult: watch a female grow on her cactus pad. [2][9]
  - Depending on temperature, growing up takes about 64–120 days.
  - At the second stage, males and females start to look different. Males build cocoons and come out with two white wings.
  - A male lives only a few days as a flying adult, just long enough to find females.

### Body parts

- **Wax coat** (11 cochineal species, all wax-coated) [1][2][3]
  - A white, powdery wax covers the female and hides her red body, so a cochineal looks grey or white from the outside.
  - The wax helps stop her drying out and keeps off rain.
  - Wild cochineals wear thick, cottony wax. The farmed cochineal has much less, which makes it easier to hurt with bad weather and predators.
- **Body** (6 mm long (adult female)) [2][4][5][6]
  - An adult female is about 6 mm long, 4.5 mm wide and 4 mm high, and weighs around 45 mg.
  - Like all female scale insects, she keeps a simple, young-looking body with no wings.
  - Once she settles, she hardly moves again and spends her life fixed to one cactus pad.
- **Red inside** (14–26% of a dried female is carminic acid) [2][7][5]
  - Squash a female and she turns bright red: her body fluids are full of carminic acid.
  - Carminic acid is the source of the dyes called cochineal and carmine.
  - Adult males make almost none. Only females are harvested for dye.
- **Mouthparts** [1][5][2]
  - Cochineals are true bugs. They push long, thin mouthparts into the cactus and drink sap from its food-carrying tubes (the phloem).
  - They feed only on prickly pear cacti in the genus Opuntia.
  - When too many feed on one plant, they can kill it.
- **Gut helpers** [6][8]
  - Scientists found fungi living in the cochineal’s gut, fat body and ovaries. Some were identical to fungi on the cactus, so the insects probably pick them up from their food.
  - These fungi make enzymes that break down plant sugars and may help the cochineal digest its sap.
  - Two kinds of Wolbachia bacteria also live inside Mexican cochineals and can make vitamin B2.
- **Legs** [9][4]
  - Young cochineals, called crawlers, use their legs to walk to a good feeding spot.
  - Once a crawler settles on the cactus pad, it becomes much less mobile.
  - Scale insects that stay in one place have evolved smaller legs and other body parts, plus wax covers to protect them.
- **Crawlers** (0.8–1.1 mm long (crawler of a close relative)) [9]
  - Crawlers are the first, newly hatched stage. In a close relative, the cactus cochineal, they are bright red and only 0.83–1.11 mm long.
  - Crawlers spread to new cacti with the wind, water, birds, farm animals and people.
  - They are so small that a new infestation is very hard to spot.
- **Cactus pad** [3][10][11]
  - Farmed cochineals live mainly on the prickly pear Opuntia ficus-indica, also called nopal.
  - In Mexico and Peru, some farmers hang cut cactus pads in greenhouses so the insects are safe from rain, wind and strong sun.
  - Far from home, cochineal can become a pest. In Tigray, Ethiopia, it has badly damaged cactus pear that people rely on for food, animal feed and fences.

### Stats

| Stat | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 6 mm | adult female, about 4.5 mm wide and 4 mm high; About 5 crawlers lined up nose to tail [2][9] |
| Weight | 45 mg | an adult female, including her wax [2] |
| Carminic acid | 14–26% | of a dried female’s weight; one review gives 12–16% [5][2] |
| Insects per kg of dye | 80,000–155,000 | estimates vary: 80,000–100,000 per kg, or about 70,000 per pound (0.45 kg) of purified dye [2][7] |
| Time to grow up | 64–120 days | depends on temperature; farms harvest after about 80–90 days [2][10] |
| Male adult life | 3–8 days | 2.7–7.9 days in the cactus cochineal, a close relative [9] |
| Eggs | up to 355 | per female, in the cactus cochineal at 32 °C [9] |
| Peru’s share | 85–90% | of the world cochineal market [2] |
| Cochineal species | 11 | in the family Dactylopiidae; Dactylopius coccus is the main farmed one [1][3] |
| Safe daily intake | 5 mg/kg | of body weight per day for E120, set by food-safety experts [15] |

### Photos

- [Cochineals on prickly pear at Teotihuacan, Mexico](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dactylopius_coccus_on_Opuntia_ficus-indica.jpg) (photo: Emőke Dénes, CC BY-SA 4.0)
- [Cochineals in Urubamba, Peru, the country that grows most of the world’s supply](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cochineal_insects_on_prickly_pear_-_Flickr_-_pellaea_(1).jpg) (photo: Jason Hollinger, CC BY 2.0)
- [Farmed cochineals in Guatiza, Lanzarote, Canary Islands](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dactylopius_coccus_01.jpg) (photo: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0)
- [Cochineals in Barlovento, La Palma, Canary Islands](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dactylopius_coccus_(Barlovento)_01_ies.jpg) (photo: Frank Vincentz, CC BY-SA 3.0)
- [Cochineals on nopal cactus in Masca, Tenerife](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dactylopius_coccus_Masca_1.jpg) (photo: Leyo, CC BY-SA 3.0 CH)
- [A spot of red shows through the white wax](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cochineal_(6505719409).jpg) (photo: Leslie Seaton, CC BY 2.0)
- [Wool dyed with cochineal (grana cochinilla)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grana_Cochinilla.jpg) (photo: Rosalía Sámano, CC BY-SA 4.0)
- [Dyeing yarn with cochineal in Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:GutierrezWorkshopTeotitlan066.jpg) (photo: Thelmadatter, CC BY-SA 4.0)

### Questions

- **What is cochineal?** The cochineal (Dactylopius coccus) is a small scale insect in the family Dactylopiidae that lives on prickly pear cacti. Females are packed with carminic acid, which is used to make the red dye carmine, also called cochineal or E120. [28][5][15]
- **Is E120 made from bugs?** Yes. E120 (cochineal extract, carminic acid and carmines) is made from dried female cochineal insects. Because it comes from insects, it is not vegetarian or vegan. [15][16]
- **Is cochineal (carmine) safe to eat?** Food-safety experts set a safe daily intake of 5 mg per kg of body weight. A small number of people are allergic, so US labels must name it, and anyone who reacts to it should see a doctor. [15][18][24]
- **How many cochineal insects does it take to make dye?** Estimates vary: about 80,000–100,000 females for 1 kg of dye, or about 70,000 insects for one pound of purified dye. [2][7]
- **Why are cochineal insects red?** Their bodies are full of carminic acid, which makes up 14–26% of a dried female. It puts ants off, so scientists think it evolved as a defence. [5][12]
- **Where do cochineal insects live?** They live on Opuntia cacti. Native populations are in highland Mexico and the Andes of southern Peru, and they are farmed in Peru, Mexico, the Canary Islands and other dry places. [3][2]
- **How long do cochineal insects live?** Growing up takes about 64–120 days, depending on temperature. Winged adult males live only a few days. [2][9]
- **Can cochineal insects harm cactus plants?** Yes. Large numbers can drain and kill a cactus. In Tigray, Ethiopia, introduced cochineal has badly damaged cactus pear crops. [2][11]

### Cochineal myths and facts

Tap Myth or Fact for each claim, then check the answer.

- "Cochineal insects are bright red on the outside." **Myth!** A live female looks white or grey because of her wax coat. The red is inside: crush her and she turns bright red. [2]
- "The red food colouring E120 comes from insects." **Fact!** E120 (cochineal extract, carminic acid and carmines) is made from dried female cochineals. [15][16]
- "Male cochineals make the dye too." **Myth!** Carminic acid makes up 14–26% of a dried female, but adult males contain almost none. [5]
- "Nothing can eat a cochineal because of its red chemical." **Myth!** Ants are put off, but some ladybird larvae, flies and a moth caterpillar eat cochineals and reuse the carminic acid to defend themselves. Even an Australian ladybird living in the Mediterranean does it. [12][13][1][17]
- "It takes tens of thousands of insects to make 1 kg of dye." **Fact!** Estimates range from about 80,000–100,000 females per kg to about 70,000 per pound of purified dye. [2][7]
- "Carmine is dangerous for everyone." **Myth!** Food-safety experts set a safe daily intake for E120. A small number of people are allergic, so in the USA it must be named on labels. [15][18]
- "People only started farming cochineal after the Spanish arrived." **Myth!** Cochineal was farmed in Mexico at least 1,000 years ago and was used in Peru and by the Aztecs long before 1521. [3][2]
- "Carminic acid can only be made by insects." **Myth!** Scientists have engineered a mould (2018), bacteria (2021) and yeast (2023) to make it in the lab, though the dye we buy still comes from insects. [19][20][21]

### Cochineal records

Superlatives for a very small insect, each checked against its source.

- Top scarlet dye for centuries: Cochineal, 1500s–1800s (From the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire until synthetic dyes arrived in the 1800s, cochineal was the main source of scarlet.) [3]
- Treasure of New Spain: Cochineal, after gold and silver (Cochineal was one of colonial Mexico’s main exports, beaten only by gold and silver. Spain treated how it was made as a state secret.) [3]
- Biggest producer: Peru, 85–90% (Peru supplies most of the world’s cochineal, much of it from the Ayacucho region of the Andes.) [2]
- First microbe-made carminic acid: Aspergillus nidulans (a mould), 2018 (The first proof that a microbe could be engineered to make carminic acid. Bacteria followed in 2021.) [19][20]
- Surprise red thief: Cryptolaemus montrouzieri (an Australian ladybird), 2024 study (This ladybird never met cochineals in its evolution, yet in the Mediterranean it stores their carminic acid and releases it in tiny defensive droplets that keep ants away.) [17]
- Oldest cochineal-dyed cloth found: Paracas, Peru, 10th–12th century (According to one review, the oldest known cochineal-dyed textiles come from Paracas in Peru; the earliest signs of farming are from Toltec sites in Mexico.) [3]

### Life of a cochineal

From a red dot on the wind to a waxy mum on a cactus pad, in about 2–4 months.

- **Day 1**: Hatching. A tiny red crawler, about 1 mm long, hatches from one of its mother’s eggs. [9]
- **First days**: On the move. The crawler wanders off. Wind, rain, birds or people may carry it to a new cactus. [9]
- **Settling**: Plugging in. It pushes its mouthparts into the pad, starts drinking sap and stops wandering. [9][5]
- **Second stage**: Girl or boy?. Males and females now look different. Females start to make wax, first as white dust, then as curls. [9]
- **Male only**: Cocoon and wings. A male finishes growing inside a cocoon and comes out red, with two white wings. [9]
- **A few days**: A short flight. The winged male lives about 3–8 days, just long enough to find and mate with females. [9]
- **2–3 months**: Growing mum. The female grows to about 6 mm and 45 mg, filling up with carminic acid. [2][5]
- **80–90 days**: Harvest time. On farms, females are collected before they lay their eggs, then dried for dye. [10][2]
- **64–120 days**: A new generation. Females that are not harvested lay their eggs, and a new wave of crawlers begins. [2][9]

### Cochineal through history

How a cactus bug became “red gold” and ended up in food labels.

- **About 1,000 years ago**: Early farmers. Cochineal-dyed cloth was made in Peru, and Toltec sites in Mexico show early cochineal farming. [3]
- **Before 1521**: Aztec and Inca red. The Aztecs developed ways to farm cochineal, and Inca rulers kept the insects in storehouses as their source of red, a royal colour. [2][22]
- **1521 onwards**: Spain takes it worldwide. After the conquest of the Aztec Empire, Spain shipped cochineal from Mexico to Europe, India and East Asia, and kept the method a secret. [2][3]
- **1600s**: Painted red. European painters prized carmine red. Rembrandt used it in his painting The Jewish Bride. [2]
- **1700s**: Oaxaca’s farmers. Indigenous farmers in Oaxaca, Mexico, produced much of the cochineal traded by the Spanish. [23]
- **Before synthetic dyes**: Scarlet coats. Cochineal dyed the scarlet jackets of English army officers. [2]
- **1800s**: New dyes, new farms. Synthetic dyes replaced cochineal and Mexican farming nearly died out, while farms started in Spain, the Canary Islands and elsewhere. [3]
- **2011**: Name it on the label. A US rule from 2009 came into force: foods and cosmetics must name cochineal extract or carmine, to help people with allergies. [18]
- **2018–2023**: Red from microbes. Scientists engineered a mould, bacteria and yeast to make carminic acid in the lab. [19][20][21]
- **Today**: Peru leads. Peru produces about 85–90% of the world’s cochineal. [2]

### Cochineal in food and make-up

Cochineal red is still used today. Here is what it is, where it turns up and what people with allergies should know.

- **E120** food code. In Europe, cochineal extract, carminic acid and carmines are labelled E120. They colour foods such as yoghurts and red fruit juices. [15][2]
- **5 mg/kg** safe daily intake. Experts set a safe intake of 5 mg per kg of body weight each day. [15]
- **2011** US label rule. In the USA, foods and cosmetics must name “cochineal extract” or “carmine” in their ingredients. [18]
- **Lipstick** and blusher. Carmine is also used to tint make-up such as lipsticks and blushers. [2]
- **Rare** allergies. A small number of people are allergic to carmine. Reactions can be quick or delayed, so they are easy to miss. [18][24][16]

A small number of people are allergic to carmine. If a red food or make-up ever makes you itchy, swollen or wheezy, tell an adult straight away and see a doctor. People who know they are allergic check labels for E120, cochineal or carmine.

### Cochineal vs aphid vs lac insect

Three sap-sucking bugs: one makes red dye, one is a garden pest and one makes shellac.

| | Cochineal | Aphid | Lac insect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group [1][25][26] | Scale insect (Dactylopiidae) | Aphid | Scale insect (Kerriidae) |
| Food [5][25][26] | Sap of prickly pear cacti only | Plant fluids from many plants | Plant sap |
| Covering [2][25][26] | White wax | Usually none (some species make wax) | A coat of resin (lac) |
| Moving about [5][25][26] | Females settle on one pad and stay put | Mostly wingless; winged forms fly off when crowded | Females stay fixed to a host tree, wrapped in resin |
| What people get [15][25][26] | Red dye (carmine, E120) | Nothing: a garden pest | Resin (shellac), dye and wax |
| Where farmed [2][3][26] | Mainly Peru, also Mexico and the Canary Islands | Not farmed | South, East and Southeast Asia |

All three are true bugs (Hemiptera) that drink plant juices through long, thin mouthparts.

### Is the cochineal endangered?

No. The cochineal is a farmed insect and has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List. Its story is about farming, old breeds and pests.

- **IUCN Red List:** Not Evaluated (NE) (Trend unknown). Native populations are in highland Mexico and the Andes of southern Peru, and it is farmed in several countries. [27][3]
- Not evaluated by the IUCN Red List
- **Threat: Bad weather**: Rain, wind, strong sun and extreme temperatures harm cochineals in open fields. [10]
- **Threat: Predators**: Ladybird larvae, fly larvae, lacewings and a moth caterpillar all eat cochineals, and some even reuse their red chemical. [1][13][17]
- **Threat: Lost old lines**: Mexican farming nearly vanished in the 1800s, and big farms now mostly grow an Andean-type cochineal. [3]
- **Helping: Small farmers**: Small-scale Mexican farmers still keep old, unique cochineal lines alive. [3]
- **Helping: Indoor farms**: Greenhouses and lab rearing systems protect cochineals from weather and predators. [10]
- **Cochineal in Tigray, Ethiopia** (NE): Brought in from abroad, cochineal has badly damaged the cactus pear that families use for food, fodder and fences. [11]
- **Cactus cochineal (Dactylopius opuntiae)** (NE): A wild relative used to control invasive prickly pear in some places, and a cactus pest in others. [1][9]

### Looks

- **Adult female**: A round, wingless body about 6 mm long, dusted with white wax over a dark purplish-red body. (About 45 mg · the only stage that makes lots of dye) [2][5]
- **Adult male**: Much smaller than the female, with wings. In the close relative Dactylopius opuntiae, males are red with two white wings and live only about 3–8 days as adults. (Makes almost no carminic acid) [9][5]
- **Crawler**: A tiny, bright red, six-legged nymph about 1 mm long that walks and drifts to a new feeding spot. (The stage that spreads to new cacti) [9]
- **Cochineal red**: The red that hides under the wax: crushed females give carmine, which dyes wool, silk, food and make-up. (Shades from scarlet to purple, depending on the metal or acid added) [2][7]

### Cochineal quiz

1. What colour does a live adult female cochineal look from the outside? **White or grey.** Her white wax coat hides the red body underneath. [2]
2. What is the red chemical inside a cochineal called? **Carminic acid.** Carminic acid is the source of cochineal and carmine dyes. [5]
3. Which animals did Thomas Eisner show are put off by carminic acid? **Ants.** In 1980, his team found carminic acid is a strong feeding deterrent to ants. [12]
4. What does a cochineal eat? **Sap of prickly pear cacti.** It drinks phloem sap from Opuntia cacti only. [5]
5. How long is an adult female cochineal? **About 6 mm.** She is about 6 mm long and weighs around 45 mg. [2]
6. Which cochineals have wings? **Adult males.** Only adult males have wings. Females stay wingless all their lives. [9][2]
7. What is the newly hatched stage of a cochineal called? **A crawler.** Crawlers are the tiny first stage that spreads to new cacti. [9]
8. Which country produces most of the world’s cochineal today? **Peru.** Peru supplies about 85–90% of the world market. [2]
9. What is cochineal’s food-additive code in Europe? **E120.** Cochineal extract, carminic acid and carmines are E120. [15]
10. Why must US labels name carmine or cochineal extract? **To help people who are allergic to it.** The 2009 US rule followed reports of allergic reactions in a small number of people. [18]
11. Which of these did NOT make carminic acid in a lab? **A tomato plant.** A mould (2018), E. coli bacteria (2021) and yeast (2023) were engineered to make it. [19][20][21]
12. In colonial Mexico, cochineal was one of the main exports after which two things? **Gold and silver.** Only gold and silver were more important exports of New Spain. [3]

### Sources (checked 2026-10-16)

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8. [Ramírez-Puebla ST, Ormeño-Orrillo E, Vera-Ponce de León A, et al. (2016). Genomes of Candidatus Wolbachia bourtzisii wDacA and Candidatus Wolbachia pipientis wDacB from the Cochineal Insect Dactylopius coccus. G3 6:3343–3349.](https://doi.org/10.1534/g3.116.031237)
9. [El Aalaoui M, Sbaghi M (2022). Temperature Dependence for Survival, Development, and Reproduction of the Cactus Cochineal Dactylopius opuntiae (Cockerell). Insects 13(5):426.](https://doi.org/10.3390/insects13050426)
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12. [Eisner T, Nowicki S, Goetz M, Meinwald J (1980). Red cochineal dye (carminic acid): its role in nature. Science 208:1039–1042.](https://doi.org/10.1126/science.208.4447.1039)
13. [Eisner T, Ziegler R, McCormick JL, Eisner M, Hoebeke ER, Meinwald J (1994). Defensive use of an acquired substance (carminic acid) by predaceous insect larvae. Experientia 50:610–615.](https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01921733)
14. [Cruz AR, Bronstein JL, Davidowitz G (2026). Thermal buffering in a sessile insect herbivore. Journal of Experimental Biology 229:jeb252214.](https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.252214)
15. [EFSA Panel on Food Additives and Nutrient Sources added to Food (ANS) (2015). Scientific Opinion on the re-evaluation of cochineal, carminic acid, carmines (E 120) as a food additive. EFSA Journal 13(11):4288.](https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4288)
16. [Tomei L, Muraro A, Giovannini M, et al. (2023). Hidden and Rare Food Allergens in Pediatric Age. Nutrients 15(6):1386.](https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15061386)
17. [Plata Á, Züst T, Bermejo A, Beitia FJ, Tena A (2024). Exotic predators can sequester and use novel toxins from exotic non-coevolved prey. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 291:20232478.](https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2023.2478)
18. [US Food and Drug Administration (2009). Listing of Color Additives Exempt From Certification; Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Labeling: Cochineal Extract and Carmine Declaration. Final rule. Federal Register 74(2):207–217.](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2009-01-05/html/E8-31253.htm)
19. [Frandsen RJN, Khorsand-Jamal P, Kongstad KT, et al. (2018). Heterologous production of the widely used natural food colorant carminic acid in Aspergillus nidulans. Scientific Reports 8:12853.](https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-30816-9)
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22. [Alegbe EO, Uthman TO (2024). A review of history, properties, classification, applications and challenges of natural and synthetic dyes. Heliyon 10:e33646.](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e33646)
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24. [Sadowska B, Sztormowska M, Gawinowska M, Chełmińska M (2022). Carmine allergy in urticaria patients. Postępy Dermatologii i Alergologii 39(1):94–100.](https://doi.org/10.5114/ada.2020.100821)
25. [UC Statewide IPM Program (2024). Pest Notes: Aphids. University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.](https://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7404.html)
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27. [Wikidata. Dactylopius coccus (Q244274).](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q244274)
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## Measurements & details

- **Size:** 3-6 mm
- **Lifespan:** 60-90 days
- **Leg Count:** 6
- **Colony Size:** 10000

## Diet & Feeding

Cochineal insects are herbivores, sipping sweet sap from prickly pear cacti to survive.

- **Primary Foods:** prickly pear cactus sap, Opuntia ficus-indica sap, cactus phloem

## Ecological connections

- **Eats:** [Prickly Pear Cactus](https://www.snappit.app/explore/prickly-pear-cactus) (*Opuntia ficus-indica*) — Cochineal drinks the sap of prickly pear cacti. It feeds only on cacti of the genus Opuntia, mainly this one.
- **Eaten by:** Hyperaspis ladybird (*Hyperaspis trifurcata*) — Some ladybird larvae eat cochineals and reuse their red chemical to defend themselves.
- **Eaten by:** [Human](https://www.snappit.app/explore/human) (*Homo sapiens*) — People farm cochineal. The dried females make a red dye for food, make-up and cloth.

## Traits

- [Wildlife](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/wildlife): Wildlife encompasses all undomesticated animal and plant life existing in their natural habitats.
- [Solitary](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/solitary): Solitary animals live alone for most of their lives, only interacting with others for mating or parental care.
- [Dye](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/dye): This human use trait indicates species from which natural dyes can be extracted and used to color textiles, food, or other materials.
- [Colorful](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/colorful): Colorful describes organisms or objects displaying a wide range of bright and distinct colors.
- [Herbivorous](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/herbivorous): This trait characterizes organisms whose diet consists entirely or primarily of plant material.
- [Desert](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/desert): Desert habitats are arid regions characterized by extremely low precipitation and often extreme temperatures, supporting specialized flora and fauna.
- [Ancient Lineage](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/ancient-lineage): This trait signifies organisms belonging to a very old evolutionary group with ancestors dating back millions of years.
- [Keystone Species](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/keystone-species): Describes a species whose presence and role have a disproportionately large effect on its environment.

## Collections

- [Insects](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/insects)

## Safety

**Danger:** 1/5 · Very low

Avoid touching or handling these delicate insects in the wild. A few people are allergic to carmine, the red dye made from cochineal. If a red food or make-up makes you itchy or swollen, tell an adult and see a doctor.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Cochineal?

Look for six legs, antennae, three body sections and the shape of the wings. Beetles have hardened front wings; flies have just one working pair. Tiny insects may need a close view before their group is clear. Insect Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How big is Cochineal?

3-6 mm

### How long does Cochineal live?

60-90 days

### What does Cochineal eat?

Cochineal insects are herbivores, sipping sweet sap from prickly pear cacti to survive.

### Where is Cochineal usually found?

Desert

### How many legs does Cochineal have?

6

### How large are Cochineal colonies?

10000

## More Insects

- [Common Eastern Bumble Bee](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-eastern-bumble-bee) (*Bombus impatiens*)
- [Spotted Lanternfly](https://www.snappit.app/explore/spotted-lanternfly) (*Lycorma delicatula*)
- [Brown-belted Bumble Bee](https://www.snappit.app/explore/brown-belted-bumble-bee) (*Bombus griseocollis*)
- [Eastern Carpenter Bee](https://www.snappit.app/explore/eastern-carpenter-bee) (*Xylocopa virginica*)

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Source: [Cochineal: Characteristics, Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/cochineal)