Carmine – also called cochineal, cochineal extract, crimson lake, or carmine lake – is a pigment of a bright-red color obtained from the aluminium complex derived from carminic acid. Specific code names for the pigment include natural red 4, C.I. 75470, or E120. Carmine is also a general term for a particularly deep-red color.
A cluster of Dactylopius coccus (cochineal scale) females growing in Barlovento, Canary Islands
Zapotec cochineal nests on Opuntia ficus-indica host cacti
Use of carmine as a staining agent in histology (here on a flatworm)
Tapestry shirt fragment, Peru, Chancay, c. 1000-1470 AD
The cochineal is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha, from which the natural dye carmine is derived. A primarily sessile parasite native to tropical and subtropical South America through North America, this insect lives on cacti in the genus Opuntia, feeding on plant moisture and nutrients. The insects are found on the pads of prickly pear cacti, collected by brushing them off the plants, and dried.
Cochineal
A cluster of females
Cochineal on opuntia in California
Cochineals on cacti in La Palma, Canary Islands