Epeolus basili, Onuferko, Thomas M., 2018

Onuferko, Thomas M., 2018, A revision of the cleptoparasitic bee genus Epeolus Latreille for Nearctic species, north of Mexico (Hymenoptera, Apidae), ZooKeys 755, pp. 1-185 : 38-43

11. Epeolus basili sp. n. Figs 24, 25, 97D, 98B

Diagnosis.

The following morphological features in combination (excluding any that are specific to the opposite sex of the one being diagnosed) can be used to tell E. basili apart from all other North American Epeolus except E. nebulosus , E. novomexicanus , and E. pusillus : the axilla is large, with the tip extending well beyond the midlength of the mesoscutellum but at most to the band of pale tomentum along its posterior margin, dilated laterally, and usually ferruginous to some degree (rarely all black) whereas the mesoscutellum ranges from entirely black to partially ferruginous; the axilla’s free portion is clearly less than 2/5 as long as its entire medial length; the mesopleuron is closely (most i<1d) and evenly punctate, that of the female is obscured by white tomentum only in the upper half (with a large, sparsely hairy circle occupying much of the ventrolateral half) whereas that of the male (excluding the hypoepimeral area) is entirely obscured by white tomentum; the T1-T3 apical fasciae are complete or only very narrowly interrupted medially; the T2 fascia has lobe-like anterolateral extensions of tomentum; and the pseudopygidial area of the female is lunate with the apex at least 2 × and clearly <2.5 × the medial length. Epeolus basili , E. nebulosus , E. novomexicanus , and E. pusillus are all extremely similar to one another. Whereas in E. pusillus the flagellum, except sometimes F1, and metasomal sterna are consistently brown or black and clearly not the same reddish-orange color as the legs (tibiae to tarsi), in E. basili the flagellum, at least ventrally, is the same reddish-orange color as the legs (tibiae to tarsi) as are usually the metasomal sterna. In E. nebulosus and E. novomexicanus the T2-T4 fasciae are on or very little removed from the apical margin, and in both species as well as in E. pusillus the pseudopygidial area of the female is commonly less and no more than 2 × the medial length. By contrast, in E. basili the T2 and T3 (for female) or T2-T4 (for male) fasciae are narrowed medially and removed from the apical margin, and the pseudopygidial area of the female is ≥2 × the medial length. Epeolus basili is also similar to E. scutellaris in that the axilla is large, with the lateral margin arcuate, and that the apical fasciae are complete or only very narrowly interrupted medially. However, in E. scutellaris the pseudopygidial area of the female is even wider (the apex ~2.5-3 × the medial length) than in E. basili , and the mesopleuron of both the female and male is obscured by white tomentum only in the upper half (with a large, sparsely hairy circle occupying much of the ventrolateral half).

Description.

FEMALE: Length 7.0 mm; head length 1.8 mm; head width 2.5 mm; fore wing length 4.8 mm.

Integument coloration. Mostly black; notable exceptions as follows: at least partially ferruginous on mandible, labrum, antenna, pronotal lobe, tegula, axilla, legs, and metasomal sterna. Mandible with apex darker than rest of mandible; preapical tooth slightly lighter than mandibular apex (difficult to see in holotype; described from paratypes). Antenna brown and orange in part. Pronotal lobe and tegula pale ferruginous to amber. Wing membrane subhyaline, apically dusky. Legs more extensively reddish orange than brown or black. S1-S5 reddish orange.

Pubescence. Face with tomentum densest around antennal socket, slightly sparser on clypeus, upper paraocular and frontal areas, and vertexal area. Dorsum of mesosoma and metasoma with bands of off-white to pale yellow short appressed setae. Mesoscutum with paramedian band. Mesopleuron densely hairy, except for sparsely hairy circular patch occupying much of ventrolateral half of mesopleuron. Metanotum with tomentum uninterrupted, uniformly off white. T1 with discal patch quadrangular and very wide, the basal and apical fasciae only narrowly joined laterally. T1-T3 with apical fasciae complete (basal fascia of T1 also), narrowed medially, and removed from apical margin, most noticeably at midline; T2 with fascia with anterolateral extensions of tomentum. T4 with fascia complete. T5 with large, continuous patch of pale tomentum bordering and separate from pseudopygidial area. T5 with pseudopygidial area lunate, its apex twice as wide as medial length, indicated by silvery setae on flat disc of apicomedial region elevated from rest of tergum. S5 with apical fimbria of coppery to silvery hairs extending beyond apex of sternum by ~2/5 MOD.

Surface sculpture. Punctures dense. Labrum with larger and sparser punctures (i=1-2d) than clypeus (i<1d). Small impunctate shiny spot lateral to lateral ocellus. Mesoscutum, mesoscutellum, and axilla coarsely and densely rugose-punctate. Tegula densely punctate mesally (i≤1d), less so laterally (i=1-2d). Mesopleuron with ventrolateral half densely punctate (i≤1d) to rugose; mesopleuron with punctures more or less equally dense throughout. Metasomal terga with punctures very fine, dense (i≈1d), evenly distributed on disc.

Structure. Preapical tooth obtuse. Labrum with pair of small subapical denticles not preceded by carinae. Frontal keel not strongly raised. Scape with greatest length 1.9 × greatest width. F2 noticeably longer than wide (L/W ratio = 1.4). Preoccipital ridge not joining hypostomal carina, from which it is separated by no less than 1 MOD at its terminal. Mesoscutellum weakly bigibbous. Axilla large, its lateral margin (L) half as long as mesoscutellar width (W) (L/W ratio = 0.5) and tip extending well beyond midlength of mesoscutellum but not as far back as its posterior margin; axilla with tip clearly visible, but unattached to mesoscutellum for less than 2/5 the medial length of axilla; axilla with lateral margin arcuate. Fore wing with three submarginal cells. Pygidial plate apically truncate.

MALE: Description as for female except for usual secondary sexual characters and as follows: F2 shorter, but still longer than wide (L/W ratio = 1.2); mesopleuron (excluding hypoepimeral area) entirely obscured by white tomentum; S4 and S5 with much longer coppery to silvery subapical hairs; pygidial plate apically rounded, with large deep, well-separated punctures, with the interspaces shining.

Etymology.

This species is named in honor of my brother, Basil V. Onuferko (1986-2013).

Distribution.

Northwestern Mexico and southwestern United States (Fig. 25).

Ecology.

HOST RECORDS: This species has been collected east of Willcox, Arizona, USA in the presence of large numbers of Colletes tectiventris Timberlake (E. Wyman, personal communication, 2014).

FLORAL RECORDS: Labels of examined voucher specimens indicate floral associations with Isocoma hartwegii (A. Gray) Greene ( Compositae ), I. tenuisecta Greene, Pectis papposa Harv. & A. Gray ( Compositae ), Psorothamnus scoparius (A. Gray) Rydb. ( Leguminosae ), and Wislizenia refracta Engelm. ( Cleomaceae ).

Discussion.

Structurally, this species is indistinguishable from the other three members of the "pusillus group", and although consistent, the features (differences in integument coloration and patterns of pubescence) that in combination may be used to distinguish E. basili from E. nebulosus , E. novomexicanus , and E. pusillus are subtle. Its status as a separate species is supported by a separate BIN and large barcode sequence divergence (>7.3%) from its nearest neighbor, E. pusillus . In the United States, Epeolus basili appears to be restricted to parts of the American Southwest, east of California.

Material studied.

Type material. Primary: USA: Arizona: 4 mi E Willcox (Cochise County), 29.viii.2013, J.S. Ascher (holotype ♀ [CCDB-22791 A05], AMNH).

Secondary: Mexico: Chihuahua: 9 mi S Hidalgo del Parral, 31.vii.1967, R.C. Gardner, C.R. Kovacic, and K. Lorenzen (paratype ♂, UCBME); Durango: Nombre de Dios, 01.viii.1951, P.D. Hurd (paratypes 1♀, 1♂, EMEC); Otinapa, 11.viii.1947, D. Rockefeller Exp. Michener (paratype ♀, AMNH); Tepehuanes, 1933, Wickham (paratype ♀, USNM).

USA: Arizona: 11 mi S San Simon, 02.ix.2013, G. Rowe (paratype ♀, PCYU); 1-3 mi SE Willcox (Cochise County), 25.viii.1994, J.G. Rozen and J.S. Ascher (paratype ♂, AMNH); 2 mi SE Willcox (Cochise County), 05.ix.1986, J.G. and B.L. Rozen (paratype ♀, AMNH); 4 mi E Willcox (Cochise County), 02.ix.2013, C. Lin (paratype ♂, AMNH), 02.ix.2013, Z. Soh (paratypes 2♂, AMNH), 03.ix.2015, R. González Vaquero (paratype ♂, PCYU), 06.ix.2012, J.G Rozen (paratypes 2♀, AMNH), 09.ix.1991, J.G. and B.L. Rozen (paratype ♀, AMNH), 11.ix.1991, J.G. and B.L. Rozen (paratypes 1♀, 2♂, AMNH), 16.ix.2012, E.S. Wyman (paratypes 2♂, AMNH), 16.ix.2012, J.G. and M.A. Rozen (paratype ♀, AMNH), 26.viii.1994, J.G. Rozen and J.S. Ascher (paratypes 3♂, AMNH), 27.viii.2013, E.S. Wyman (allotype ♂ [CCDB-22791 A11], AMNH), 27.viii.2013, E.S. Wyman (paratypes 8♂, AMNH), 27.viii.2013, W.J. Cromartie (paratype ♂, AMNH), 27.viii.2013, G. Rowe (paratypes 7♂ (1 barcoded [CCDB-24580 G03]), PCYU), 28.viii.1985, J.G. and B.L. Rozen (paratypes 8♂, AMNH), 29.viii.2013, J.S. Ascher (paratypes 3♂, AMNH), 30.viii.1993, J.G. Rozen (paratypes 1♀, 9♂, AMNH); E Moore Ranch Rd (32.2391°N; 109.7722°W) (Willcox), 29.viii.2017, R. Oram (paratype ♀, RSKM); Phoenix (Maricopa County), 13.x.1997, K.C. Rozen (paratypes 3♂, AMNH); San Simon (Cochise County), 01.ix.1976, R.M. Bohart (paratype ♂, UCBME); SE Willcox (Cochise County), 30.ix.2016, L. Packer (paratype ♀, PCYU); Willcox (Cochise County), 02.ix.2003, J.G. Rozen, J.S. Ascher, R.L. Staff, and R.E. Edwards (paratypes 2♂, AMNH), 22.ix.1984, J.G. Rozen (paratype ♀, AMNH), 26.ix.1980, J.G. Rozen (paratypes 6♀, AMNH), 28.viii.1958, P.D. Hurd (paratype ♂, UCBME), 28-29.viii.1988, K.V. Krombein and B. Norden (paratype ♂, USNM); New Mexico: 5 mi E Laguna (Valencia County), 07.viii.1966, C.R. Kovacic (paratype ♀, UCBME); 20 mi N Animas (Hidalgo County), 05.ix.1981, R.M. Bohart (paratype ♀, UCBME); Mesilla Park, 17.ix.????, T.D. Cockerell (paratype ♀, USNM).

DNA barcoded material with BIN-compliant sequences.

Available. BOLD:ACR5356. See Type material for specimens examined and sequenced (indicated by unique CCDB-plate and well number).