Paratetrapedia alsinai, Aguiar & Melo, 2011

Aguiar, Antonio J. C. & Melo, Gabriel A. R., 2011, Revision and phylogeny of the bee genus Paratetrapedia Moure, with description of a new genus from the Andean Cordillera (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Tapinotaspidini), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 162 (2), pp. 351-442 : 388-390

PARATETRAPEDIA ALSINAI SP. NOV. ( FIG. 73 )

Comments and diagnosis: Paratetrapedia alsinai is very similar to P. flavifrons in the yellow infumate wing membrane and to P. tocantinensis and P. romani in the long acute tooth on anterior margin of hind basitarsus of male. The female of P. alsinai differs from P. romani by T4 with a complete marginal hair band, occupying the entire margin, and smaller body size. The male of P. alsinai differs from P. flavifrons by hind basitarsus with one acute tooth on anterior margin. Paratetrapedia alsinai is distinct from P. flavifrons and P. romani by the disc of mesoscutum without orange yellow lateral portions. The male genitalia of P. alsinai were not dissected in order to preserve the only male specimen known, here selected as the holotype.

Description

Holotype male: Body length: 8.0; maximum head width: 2.65; fore wing length (including tegula): 8.0. Colour. Integument mostly orange yellow. Mandible yellow with apex black; disc of frons, upper paraocular area, and vertex black; frons with one thin yellow stripe on mid line, not contiguous with supraclypeal area and contacting the mid ocellus; genal area completely yellow; scape yellow, pedicel and flagellomeres reddish orange. Mesoscutum black with two thin yellow stripes on disc and lateral margins; mid portion of lateral yellow stripe of mesoscutum weakly enlarged; scutellum yellow; axillar fossa black. Terga orange yellow; marginal zone slightly brown. Wing membrane yellow infumate; microtrichia mostly yellow; apical third of fore wing dark because of presence of dark brown microtrichia; veins and pterostigma orange yellow; tibial spurs white. Pubescence. Mostly pale yellow, except hind basitarsus with pubescence pale brown. Mandible, lower portion of mesepisternum, coxa, trochanter, and lower mesepisternum with long fine hairs, length about twice the width of mandibular base. Scape with long pale yellow setae on inner face, about 0.18 mm in length. Mesoscutum and scutellum with sparse short plumose yellow pubescence; T4–T6 with dense marginal band of yellow hairs occupying whole margin; posterior margin of S2 with short row of simple setae isolated on mid portion; posterior margin of S3 of male deeply concave in ‘U’ shape covered by dense short plumose pubescence; S4 and S5 typical of genus; S6 with two rows of stout plumose setae on lateral margin and short plumose hairs on margin of apex. Integument sculpture. Clypeus with sparse shallow coarse punctures (1–2 pd), intermingled amongst sparse minute punctures (> 2 pd); disc of frons with sparse coarse punctures (1–2 pd); antennal scrobe with dense fine punctures (1 pd). Mesoscutum and scutellum with dense minute punctures (<0.5 pd), intermingled amongst sparse coarser punctures (> 2 pd); metapostnotum with sparse fine punctures (> 3 pd); lateral mesepisternum mainly with sparse coarse punctures (> 2 pd). Structure. Pronotal collar with lamella thin acute throughout its length. Scutellum profile weakly convex. Hind basitarsus with acute tooth on anterior margin. Head about 1.2¥ broader than long (2.65: 2.15); ratio of lower interocular distance and upper interocular distance: 0.82 (1.17: 1.42); clypeus about 1.9¥ broader than long (1.1: 0.6); scape: length 0.67, maximum width 0.22; length of F1–F3: 0.2, 0.2, 0.25; diameter of F2: 0.2.

Paratype female: Body length: 8.0; maximum head width: 2.7; fore wing length (including tegula): 7.8. Colour. Similar to male. Pubescence. Similar to male, except for pubescence on margin of mandible, coxa, trochanter, and mesepisternum with only short hairs; T4–T6 with marginal band of golden yellow hairs occupying whole margin. Integument sculpture. Similar to male, except for not having minute punctures on clypeus; frons with coarser punctures; frons with dense coarse punctures (1 pd) on disc and fine punctures on lateral portions (0.5 pd); metapostnotum with dense minute punctures. Structure. Similar to male, except that scutellum disc weakly convex, almost flat. Head about 1.2¥ broader than long (2.7; 2.25); ratio of lower interocular distance to upper interocular distance: 0.86 (1.3: 1.5); clypeus about two times broader than long (1.25: 0.6); scape: length 0.77, maximum width 0.17; length of F1–F3: 0.22, 0.1, 0.2; F2 diameter: 0.22.

Etymology: The species name is dedicated to Dr Arturo Roig-Alsina.

Distribution: Brazil: Amazonas ( Fig. 73 ).

Type material: Holotype male, ‘ DZUP \ 022973’ ‘MANAUS - AM \ BRAZIL VII-52\ F.M. Oliveira’ . Paratypes: 1 female ( INPA), ‘ BRAZIL: AM \ MANAUS\ C. Univers. \ 11-VI-1982 ’ ‘ J.A. Rafael \ Arm. Malaise’ .

Figures

Figure 73. Geographical distribution of Paratetrapedia alsinai sp. nov., Paratetrapedia tocantinensis sp. nov., Paratetrapedia romani, and Paratetrapedia flavifrons sp. nov.