Trichocolletes nitens, Batley, 2012

Batley, Michael, 2012, Revision of the Australian Bee Genus Trichocolletes Cockerell (Hymenoptera: Colletidae: Paracolletini), Records of the Australian Museum (Rec. Aust. Mus.) 64 (1), pp. 1-50 : 30-31

Trichocolletes nitens n.sp.

Figs 13 , 69 , 108

Type. Holotype ♂, 5.5–6.5 km SW McDermid Rock , Western Australia, 27 Sep.–3 Oct. 1978, T. F. Houston, on flowers of Daviesia aphylla , in WAM 13800.

Specimens examined. The holotype and the following. Western Australia: ♀, 10 km NE Kulin (32.6014°S 118.2158°E), 10 Oct. 2009, M. Batley, ex Gastrolobium sp., AM; 3♂, 7♀, 5.5–6.5 km SW McDermid Rock, 27 Sep.–3 Oct. 1978, T. F. Houston, on flowers of Daviesia aphylla & Leptospermum erubescens, WAM (13800–10); 6♀, Merredin, WAM (13509,10,13778–81); 2♀, Merredin (31.4594°S 118.3169°E), 19 Oct. 2009, M. Batley, ex Gastrolobium sp., AM (K.344745); ♀, Minnivale, WAM (13811); ♂, ♀, 6 km W Newdegate (33.1011°S 118.9639°E), 8 Oct. 2009, M. Batley, ex Gastrolobium ilicifolium, AM ; ♂, ♀, 15 km N Westonia (31.1981°S 118.7586°E), 19 Sep.2004,M. Batley, ex Gastrolobium sp., AM (K.344743– 44); 2♂, ♀, Yelbeni, Sep., B. O’Connor, WAA (45277–78, 45303).

Diagnosis

Dark-coloured; eyes not hairy; metasomal bands wide, orange-gold. Male fore trochanter with blunt projection; mid femur incrassate. Female scutal hair dark brown; hind tibial scopa dark brown; hind tarsal claw simple.

Descriptions

Male— Head width 4.00 mm, body length 12.6 mm. Relative dimensions: HW 50, HL 39, UID 30, UFW 39, LID 30, DMA 30, HVO 2, WOC 14, MOD 4, OOD 8, IAD 8, ASD 3, AOD 7, ML 18, BMW 6, MSL 0.5, SL 13, SW 3, FL c. 50.— Eyes not hairy; face narrow; malar space short (length c. 0.1× basal mandibular width); flagellomeres c. 1.5× as long as wide. Legs slender; fore trochanter with triangular ventral projection; mid femur incrassate; hind tarsus as long as hind tibia; hind basitarsus 3.5× as long as wide. Genital capsule generally like that for T. orientalis n.sp. (Fig. 37); S7 (K.344743) with long, thin posterior projections and ligulate processes, rectangular lateral lobes with sinuate posterior marg in ( Fig. 69 ).— Labrum, mandible and rim of clypeus amber; scape, tarsi, tibiae and femoral apices orange-brown; remainder of legs dark brown; flagellum brown, paler ventrally. T 1–5 with wide, bright gold bands; T 7 dull orange-brown.— Clypeus densely punctate; scutum with weak pit-reticulation, dull sheen and dense, small punctures.— Face densely covered with bright orange hair, stiffly erect on clypeus. Scutum closely covered with long, plumose orange hair; fore basitarsus with dense plume of long golden hair; hind femur with sparse fringe long hair on anterior margin; mid basitarsus with conspicuous brush of erect golden hair on anterior margin; metasoma sericeous with semi-adpressed golden pubescence.

Female ( AM K.344744).— Head width 4.35 mm, body length 12.9 mm. Relative dimensions: HW 50, HL 37, UID 29, UFW 31, LID 30, DMA 27, HVO 2, WOC 13, MOD 3, OOD 8, IAD 13, ASD 3, AOD 9, ML 20, BMW 6, MSL 0.5, SL 14, SW 3, FL c. 31.— Eyes not hairy; inner orbits parallel; malar space short (length c. 0.1× basal mandibular width); clypeus transversely convex; middle flagellomeres as long as wide; inner hind tibial spur with c. 7 long, well-spaced teeth; tarsal claws simple; pygidial plate entire with broad medial elevation.— Rim of clypeus amber; labrum and mandible orange-brown; legs dark brown. T 1–4 with wide, deep gold bands.— Clypeus polished apically, increasingly reticulate basally, with large punctures, sparse apically becoming close basally; scutal sculpture as for male.— Face with long white, plumose hair, becoming pale orange near ocelli, dense in paraocular areas and on frons, sparse on clypeus and supraclypeal area. Scutum densely covered with short, plumose, brown hair, tipped with dark brown; metasoma sericeous with semi-adpressed golden pubescence; tibial scopa dark brown; prepygidial fimbria orange-gold.

Remarks. This species can usually be distinguished from T. centralis n.sp. by its darker colouration, but males also have features not found in T. centralis n.sp.: a projection on the fore trochanter, and mid femur incrassate and a conspicuous brush on the anterior margin the mid basitarsus. Females differ from T. centralis n.sp. mostly by colour but also by the simple hind tarsal claw.

This species is referred to as F256/M 230 in Houston (2000).

Distribution. Inland parts of southwestern Australia (AW, MAL, COO) ( Fig. 108 ).

Etymology. The specific name is a Latin adjective meaning brilliant or beautiful, referring to the conspicuous bright gold metasomal bands.

Figures

Figs 10–13. Faces of female Trichocolletes with elevated (10 and 11) or normal (12 and 13) vertex.

Figs 68–79. Seventh sternum of Trichocolletes males.

Figs 104–115. Known distribution of Trichocolletes species.