An honest to goodness Texas treasure!

https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/billarbon

In the sixteenth century, one of the world's most precious commodities was cochineal, a legendary red dye treasured by the ancient Mexicans and sold in the great Aztec marketplaces, where it attracted the attention of the Spanish conquistadors. ...
" A Perfect Red" by Amy Butler tells the AMAZING story of cochineal.

https://books.google.com/books?id=rZImAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA19&lpg=RA1-PA19&dq=cochineal+confusus&source=bl&ots=eUD0Tf8wgv&sig=nmkvble_IvzI4a15WtinTrTZEvA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYhIvOt9jXAhVrqlQKHVlRCFQ4ChDoAQgQMAM

More:
baldeagle suggested an ID
Improving
1mo

Compare Agree

Cactus Scattered Cochineal
Dactylopius opuntiae
I’m confident these are Dactylopius opuntiae, based on information in this study of the ranges of Dactylopius species and their host plants within Mexico. Specifically:
• Only two species are found at altitudes as low as the 400-1200 feet of the Austin area: Dactylopius opuntiae and Dactylopius tomentosus.
• Although I haven’t yet found documentation of the ranges of in the United States, only one of those species is documented as far north in Mexico as states that border the United States: Dactylopius opuntiae.
• Dactylopius opuntiae also is found in wetter climates—wetter, at least, than the near-desert conditions favored by Dactylopius tomentosus.
• Perhaps more to the point, only one of those species—again, Dactylopius opuntiae—causes damage to the host plant that is as severe as the damage we see in Central Texas.
• Finally, unlike most if not all other species in this genus, Dactylopius opuntiae is tiny. By that I mean that the others are much easier to see—bigger than an aphid but no bigger than the larva of a ladybug. But Dactylopius opuntiae is so small that it’s all but impossible to locate through its cocoon. Although we can’t determine that from these photos, that has been true of every cochineal bug I’ve ever examined in Texas. By contrast, when touring a cochineal farm in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, I had no trouble seeing Dactylopius coccus, even with the cocoon in place.
In other words, based on all these factors, I think it’s safe to say that any observation of cochineal insects in Texas—except, perhaps in the Trans-Pecos region—is Dactylopius opuntiae.
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Try: https://www.inaturalist.org/people/jannvendetti

See comments to understand how difficult it is to get to "species" with any accuracy. Thank you Alice!
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/8924378

And more:
Point Conception Jerusalem Cricket ( spatulate spines...)

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/2641053

Quite the discussion for this little plant:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/2446794

https://books.google.com/books?id=rZImAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA19&lpg=RA1-PA19&dq=cochineal+confusus&source=bl&ots=eUD0Tf8wgv&sig=nmkvble_IvzI4a15WtinTrTZEvA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYhIvOt9jXAhVrqlQKHVlRCFQ4ChDoAQgQMAM

MY QUESTION:
Have been told that cochineal ( and Jeruselem Crickets and Old Man of the Woods) can NOT be identified to species with pics. So, why are species IDs available as a choice? I am soooo confused! Thanks!

ANSWER:
iNaturalist doesn't take into account whether or not a species can be identified to species level based on photos. Sometimes people also have additional non-photographic information to support species determination.

Hope that helps.

Thank you Carrie!

There are a few sources that are available online.
On americanarachnology.org, do an author search for Haradon (Richard). There you will find a series of papers on the revision of Paruroctonus from 1983, '84, and '85. There are many other papers on scorpions, but that series is best for Paruroctonus and California.
On digitallibrary.amnh.org, search for Gertsch and Gertsch and Soleglad. Of particular note are the monograph on Uroctonus (now Pseudouroctonus, Graemeloweus, Kovarikia, Catalinia, and Uroctonites), the Pan-Puritan Expedition, and Paruroctonus ("Vejovis boreus group"). There are several others by searching "scorpiones". You might need to pick and choose.
On scholar.google.com search "Williams Baja", and Stanley C. Williams or S. C. Williams. I don't think it's available but search for John Hjelle's paper on Coast Ranges.

For Hadrurus anzaborrego and Anuroctonus, search for those with Soleglad

• thanks for info from Kari McWest my scorpions guru...