A Catalog of the Tortoise Beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae) Collection Deposited in the Zoological Museum Hamburg (ZMH)
Author
Simões, Marianna V. P.
Author
Husemann, Martin
Author
Sekerka, Lukáš
text
The Coleopterists Bulletin
2021
2021-03-20
75
1
191
210
http://dx.doi.org/10.1649/0010-065x-75.1.191
journal article
10.1649/0010-065X-75.1.191
1938-4394
5454573
Cassida aspectabilis
Spaeth, 1914
(
Figs. 13–14
)
Cassida aspectabilis
Spaeth 1914a: 557
.
Type
Localities.
“südlichen
Vorderindien
, besonders bei
Shembaganur
und
Dindigul
[
India
:
Tamil Nadu
:
Senbahanoor
and
Dindigul
]”
.
Type Specimens Examined.
Syntype
: glued, “
Cassida
| aspectabilis [t & hw, w, cb] ||
Spaeth
det. | Cotyp.! [t & hw, w, cb] || Shembagan. | Travancor [hw by
F. Spaeth
, w, cb] || Madura (1916) | Vordeindien [hw, y, cb; label subsequently added by
E. Ross
] ||
Cassida
| aspectabilis | 113.) Spaeth. | Vorderindien [hw, y, bf, cb] ||
ZMH 824674
[w, bf, sf]” (
ZMH
)
.
Current Status.
Synonym of
Cassida dorsonotata
Boheman, 1854
.
Remarks.
Spaeth (1914a)
described this taxon based on a large series of specimens from various localities in southern
India
and stated that it is distinct from all Indian species of
Cassida
based on the subtriangular shape of the body. He also stated that specimens of
Cassida dorsonotata
Boheman, 1854
from Boheman’ s collection are in fact
C. aspectabilis
and do not match the original description of
C. dorsonotata
.
Thus, he did not consider them as types of the latter species and followed
Weise (1897)
, who suggested the species to be identical to Boheman’ s
C. dorsonotata
.
Borowiec (1997)
studied types of both taxa, synonymized
C. aspectabilis
with
C. dorsonotata
, and designated a
lectotype
for the latter. We have examined types of
C. dorsonotata
in the Boheman collection, and they are slightly less triangular-shaped and much paler in color in comparison to Spaeth’ s
C. aspectabilis
.
Clearly this is only intraspecific variability, and we agree with Borowiec’ s synonymy.