ABSTRACT
Pentatomidae, commonly known as stink bugs, are the most diverse family of pentatomomorphan bugs, found in all major zoogeographic regions of the world. A few species of Pentatomidae such as Catacanthus Spinola and Udonga Distant are known for their mass emergence behaviour which causes public nuisance. Pentatominae is the most diverse and abundant group, which alone constitutes more than 80 percent of the Pentatomidae known from India. The secretion of the external scent efferent system in Pentatomidae is assumed to have some defence function which helps ward off natural enemies. Adults exhibit thanatosis and quite a few species are attracted to light. Pentatominae is the most diverse subfamily of Pentatomidae, containing 660 genera and 3484 species. Pentatomidae are cosmopolitan in distribution, found in all major zoogeographical regions and are particularly diverse in tropical and subtropical regions of the Southern Hemisphere. The Pentatomidae is strongly supported as a monophyletic group on the basis of morphological and molecular evidence.
