Stiretrus caeruleus, Laporte, 1833

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 : 28

caeruleus (Stiretrus ) Dallas 1851: 79. [ Fig. 29 ]

Original data: “ ♀ ”; “a. MeXico.” [syntype (s)]

LECTOTYPE ♀ (designated by Thomas 1992: 110): purple-margined lectotype disc; red-margined type disc; “ Mexico / 48 11”; “4. STIRETRUS COERULEUS,”; “a”; “NHMUK 010592388”. Fourth and fifth right and left antennomeres, and left middle leg missing (the latter, however, is glued on the first label) ( Fig. 29 ).

Current status: Stiretrus anchorago ( Fabricius, 1775) (synonymised by Thomas 1992: 109–110).

Notes: Thomas (1992: 110) explained: “The type of Stiretrus caerulaeus [sic!] Dallas was located in the British Museum (Natural History). It is labeled: (a) “Type,” (b) “Mex.” (c) “ Stiretrus caerulaeus .” The specimen is a female and is metallic blue in color.” From Dallas’s original description, we do not know whether he had one or more specimens, only the sex: female. Walker (1867a: 115) listed one specimen with the same provenance (“a. Mexico ”) and we have found only one female specimen in the collection but cannot be sure it was the only one Dallas had. By giving its labels data and calling the specimen “the type”, Thomas designated it as the lectotype by inference of “the type” ( ICZN 1999: Art. 74.6). David & Dickinson (2016: 15) remarked: “Names that in their original form used ligatures are incorrect original spellings (Art. 27) but when the ligature is resolved and two letters replace it the names become correct original spellings (Art. 32.2.2.).” and later, p. 20, “Article 58.1 (I.C.Z.N., 1999) states that species-group names that contain -ae- and -oe-, but are otherwise identical, are deemed to be homonyms when included in the same genus (Art. 58); indeed, classical Latin dictionaries list coerul- as a variant of caerul- ( Gaffiot, 1934).” Dallas (1851: 79) had originally named the species “ STIRETRUS caeruleus ”; this was an incorrect original spelling. The correct original spelling should be “caeruleus”, as in our entry. Walker’s (1867a: 115) heading (and thus label) reads “ STIRETRUS COERULEUS”; this is an incorrect subsequent spelling.

Figures

FIGURES 25–32. Type specimens deposited in NHMUK. 25, Platynopus borneensis; 26, Bodetria brenthoides; 27, Oechalia bryani; 28, Canthecona caerulea; 29, Stiretrus caeruleus; 30, Arma caliginosa; 31, Bodetria chrysochlora; 32, Oplomus chrysomela. Scale bars: 4 mm.