Further research reveals I was thinking of "lerps" - a sap sucking insect.

The singular and plural form of the word are the same when referring to the insect - as in thrips I believe. [What is it about those sucking insects that creates a whole new set of vocabulary rules?] I also erred when I mentioned the creature's "test" (shell). It is more correctly known as a "lerp". ...and this set me wondering whether there are any other creatures named for their residences?? Cat / cattery perhaps? [wink e-]

For those that are interested, I found the following in a list of insect pests affecting Eucalypts (gum trees for those that don't know):

* Lace and basket lerps (Cardiaspina spp.); a sap sucking insect beneath a fan-shaped lerp which causes necrosis on foliage of mature leaves, especially of E .camaldulensis (river red gum) and E. blakelyi (Blakely's red gum);

* Sugary lerps (Glycaspis spp.); a sap sucking insect beneath a soft whitish conical lerp on mature foliage which produces honey-dew leading to sooty mould formation but not necrosis; E. camaldulensis is the principal host.


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