National Zoological Collection Research Articles

A note on the first registered Mollusca in the National Zoological Collections at the Zoological Survey of India

Museum collections are important refer­ence system for the study of extinct and extant species. The voucher specimens collected during various faunistic field surveys and explorations pre­served and deposited in natural history museums help in identifying species, their habitat, study on their ecology and behavior and tracking the historical background of such collections. The NZC present in different sections of Zoological Survey of India have been acquired from the Museum of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, the Zoological section of the Indian Mu­seum and collections through various surveys since early part of 19th century. During the famous marine expedition by Investigators, apart from naturalists, many other private donors including ship captains, geologists and physicians who have contributed to the Indian Museum through their personal collections. This paper deals with such a collection made by a Branch Pilot and which also happen to be the first registered mollusca collection of the Indian Museum now under the custody of the National Zoological Collection at the Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata.

Type depositories of Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera) species described from the Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University, India

The type specimens of 717 chalcidoid species described by taxonomists from the Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University, India, and their depositories are tabulated. Table 1 lists the holotypes and other type specimens of the species deposited in the Natural History Museum, London, England (BMNH), National Zoological Collections, Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, India (NZSI), Forest Entomology Division, Forest Research Institute, Dehra Dun, India (FRI), National Pusa Collections, Division of Entomology, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India (NPC), and the Insect Collection, Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India (ZDAMU). The holotypes and lectotypes of 700 species are distributed as follows: BMNH (175), NZSI (34), FRI (28), NPC (131), and ZDAMU (332). The holotypes of 17 species could not be located in ZDAMU, but all of these species are represented by paratypes. A further 23 species whose types are not located in ZDAMU are listed in Table 2.

The occurrence of Tenebrionidae (Coleoptera) in Poland based on the largest national museum collections

The paper presents the results of a study on the tenebrionid beetles (more than 10,500 specimens belonging to 78 species) collected in Poland and preserved in the following national zoological collections: Institute of Systematics and Evolution of Animals PAS, Cracow (ISEA), Museum and Institute of Zoology PAS, Warsaw (MIZ) and Upper Silesian Museum, Bytom (USMB). The occurrence of 14 rarely recorded species is confirmed. The presence of 14 studied species on the „Polish Red List of Endangered Animals” and „Polish Red Data Book of Animals” is recorded. The common species, Isomira murina (L.), as a senior synonym of I. semiflava (KUST.), should be excluded from the „Polish Red List of Endangered Animals”. Two species should be excluded from Polish fauna because of an erroneous determination: Pedi- nus helopioides AHR. as Crypticus quisquilius (L.), and Isomira icteropa (KUST.) as Isomira murina (L.). New distributional data on the occurrence on Catalogus faunae Poloniae regions is given for 44 species. Centorus elongatus (HERBST), Cryphaeus cornutus (FISH.) and Nalassus convexus (COM.) are recorded from Poland, but not included in Polish fauna.

Checklist of spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh

Introduction Spiders are one of the most familiar and fascinating creatures. They are ubiquitous and diverse predators in terrestrial ecosystems and are found in diverse habitats. The erstwhile Central Indian State of Madhya Pradesh is now divided into two states, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Many species of spiders are known from these states but there is not a complete record of all species reported from this region. The checklist provided in Table 1 attempts to give a precise account of spiders known from Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. This list is based on published records and identified specimens in the National Zoological Collection, Zoological Survey of India.

Addition of Cantharidae in the National Zoological Collection, Zoological Survey of India

Addition of Cantharidae in the National Zoological Collection, Zoological Survey of India

Allopharynx leiperi, a New Plagiorchiid Trematode from an Indian Water Snake

Allopharynx leiperi, a new plagiorchiid trematode, is described from the spleen of the water snake, Tropidonotus piscator, in Hyderabad, India. A. leiperi finds its closest affinities with A. tropidonoti (MacCallum, 1918) Price, 1938. The present communication deals with a fluke (Fig. 1) of the genus Allopharynx, Shtrom, 1928 from Tropidonotus piscator. The fluke is of a rare occurrence, causing only light infection. Only eight specimens were collected, in the months of November and December, from a few of several hundreds of snakes dissected and examined during various seasons in 1954 and 1955. After being examined in live condition, the flukes were fixed in 70% alcohol. The preserved material was stained in Ehrlich's hematoxylin and subsequently mounted in Canada balsam. All measurements are in microns except where otherwise indicated. Allopharynx leiperi sp. n. Host: Tropidonotus piscator. Location: Spleen. Locality: Hyderabad, India. Specimens deposited: National Zoological Collection of Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, 12, holotype-W6676/1; paratype-W6677/1.