Sphecodes (Austrosphecodes) tainoi Engel, 2006

Engel, Michael S. & Prado, Sara G., 2014, First record of the cleptoparasitic bee genus Sphecodes from Puerto Rico (Hymenoptera: Halictidae), Journal of Melittology 39, pp. 1-6 : 3-5

Sphecodes (Austrosphecodes) tainoi Engel

( Figs. 2–7 )

NEW RECORDS (8♀♀, 4♂♂): 3♀♀ USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: St. Isabel , N18°00.017’ W066°26.115’, N.W. River, 13 Mar. [March], 2013, S.G. Prado, [each individually numbered as #174, #298, and #161] ( MEBT) . 1♀ USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: St. Isabel , N17°58.632’ W066°23.096’, Portalatin, 29 Jan. [January], 2013, S.G. Prado, #13 ( SEMC) . 1♀ USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: St. Isabel , N17°59.705’ W066°25.063’, Gomez, 23 Jan. [January], 2013, S.G. Prado, #77 ( SEMC) . 1♀ USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: St. Isabel , N17°57.780’ W066°23.298’, Escalera Sr., 22 Apr. [April], 2013, S.G. Prado, #193 ( NMNH) . 1♂ USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: St. Isabel , N17°58.547’ W066°25.063’, S.E. River, 2 May 2013 , S.G. Prado, #388 ( SEMC). 1♀, USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: Ponce, N18°02.275’ W066°38.585’, A20 (Malaise trap), 17 June–15 July 2014 , S.G. Prado, #2 ( MEBT). 2♂♂, USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: Ponce, N18°02.275’ W066°38.585’, A20 Malaise trap), 17 June–15 July 2014 , S.G.

Prado , [each individually numbered as #4 and #5] ( MEBT). 1♀ , USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: Ponce, N17°58.816’ W067°10.231’, USFWS (net) , 17 June–15 July 2014, S.G. Prado, #4 ( SEMC). 1♂ , USA: PR [ Puerto Rico]: Ponce, N18°07.461’ W066°38.263’, Vasquez sun (elevated pan trap), 17 June–15 July 2014, S.G. Prado ( NMNH) .

COMMENTS: The new material differs very slightly from the original description (vide infra) but in all other respects is identical with the type series from Cuba. More importantly, comparison between the terminalia of males from Puerto Rico and Cuba show that the genitalia are identical in all respects. The drawing of the genital capsule in Engel (2006a) is a bit stylized such that the long, setose basal lobe of the gonostylus does not stand out quite as prominently as it should, the gonocoxite covered by the lobe being broader than that implied, and the ventral prong on the penis valve was accidentally omitted.

Notable aspects apparently representing variations are as follow: mandible typically dark brown to dark reddish brown except some with more broad amber coloration on outer surface; mesoscutum with punctures separated by slightly less to slightly more than a puncture width and thereby sometimes a bit more widely spaced in places than the Cuban series, those punctures along borders smaller and denser, integument between punctures smooth and shining; mesoscutellum with punctures becoming a bit more faint medially on disc; areas more reddish amber or reddish brown in Cuban series are more distinctly red to orange in the Puerto Rican material (the slightly lighter appearance in Cuban material perhaps represents fading as that series had been stored under variable conditions since 1967), terga I–III sometimes more completely orange, some individuals with reddish orange coloration extending across more apical terga, sternum IV typically lighter apically; setae more densely branched lower on face.

Given that S. tainoi was regularly encountered in the areas depicted in figure 1, it is likely that they were victimizing nearby nests of another bee. It would be worthwhile during future surveys to seek nesting sites and attempt to determine what the host of S. tainoi might be, and perhaps to elaborate further on its biology. At least three species of Lasioglossum Curtis were found in the same fields (Prado et al., in prep.), and two of those are known also from Cuba. It is possible that at least one of these may be the host of S. tainoi , and perhaps its host on other islands as well.

The occurrence of S. tainoi in western Cuba and now Puerto Rico suggests that the species has a broader range in the Greater Antilles than was originally surmised. This is perhaps not surprising as the previous apparent “endemism” of the species was more a reflection of a lack of adequate collecting than any real evidence of a more regionalized occurrence. It is possible that with sufficient collecting the species may be found throughout Cuba and across the intervening Hispaniola as well. These discoveries highlight the need for more extensive sampling and biological investigations into the bees of the Caribbean islands, and particularly the fauna of Halictinae. As more material of Sphecodes becomes available from throughout the Caribbean a comprehensive revision of the fauna would be most beneficial, providing revised hypotheses for species circumscription within the region ( Engel, 2011b; Gonzalez et al., 2013) and a foundation from which to ascertain relationships of these taxa to the mainland fauna and their historical biogeography.

Figures

Figures 2–5. Sphecodes (Austrosphecodes) tainoi Engel from Puerto Rico. 2. Dorsal habitus of female. 3. Facial view of female. 4. Dorsal habitus of male. 5. Facial view of male.

Figure 6–7. Lateral views of Sphecodes (Austrosphecodes) tainoi Engel from Puerto Rico. 6. Fe- male. 7. Male.