Sesha manifesta, (Sesha)

Roell, Talita, Lemaître, Valérie A., Webb, Michael D. & Campos, Luiz A., 2023, An annotated and illustrated Type Catalogue of the predacious Shieldbugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Asopinae) in the Collection of the Natural History Museum, London, Zootaxa 5232 (1), pp. 1-105 : 53

manifesta (Sesha) Distant 1887a: 343–344. [ Figs 101–102 ]

Original data: “ Hab. Sikkim (Calc. Mus . and coll. Dist.).” [syntypes (two depositories)]

SYNTYPE ♁: blue-margined syntype disc; “ Sikkim.”; “ manifesta Dist. [Distant’s handwriting]”; “NHMUK 010592140”. Fourth and fifth right and left antennomeres, left anterior leg, and right posterior leg missing. There are two antennomeres and two legs glued on a card pinned below the specimen ( Fig. 101 ) .

? SYNTYPE ♁: blue-margined syntype disc; “ Sikkim ”; “Atkinson Coll. 92–6.”; “NHMUK 010592145”. Second to fifth right and left antennomeres missing ( Fig. 102 ) .

Current status: Blachia ducalis Walker, 1867 (synonymised by Atkinson 1888: 171; see Distant 1902: 247; Schouteden 1907: 29).

Notes: Referring to Blachia ducalis, Thomas (1994: 167) wrote: “The type series, one male and three females, were examined in the BM[NH]. Also, from India (1 female).” It is difficult to understand what he meant as Walker mentioned only one specimen (holotype) for Blachia ducalis and we have found only one (or two?) male syntype (s) for its synonym, Sesha manifesta Distant. The specimen from Atkinson’s collection was accessioned in 1892 but was reported by Atkinson (1888); Distant may have used it when he described his species. It may be the one he reported as being in “Calc. Mus .” Indeed, Edwin F. T. Atkinson (1840–1890), “Accountant- General of Bengal and President of the Board of Trustees of the Indian Museum” lived and died in Calcutta ( Walsingham, 1890: lix). The material he collected in India is mostly deposited at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale (MCSN Genova) ( Poggi & Conci, 1996: 11), with the rest of his Hemipteran collection at NHMUK and Dresden ( Horn et al., 1990: 22).

Figures

FIGURES 97–104. Type specimens deposited in NHMUK. 97, Picromerus lewisi; 98, Oplomus lineatus; 99, Cimex luridus; 100, Glypsus luridus; 101–102, Sesha manifesta; 103, Tynacantha marginata; 104, Canthecona marginella. Scale bars: 4 mm.