Amegilla (Zonamegilla) alpha (Cockerell)

Leijs, Remko, Batley, Michael & Hogendoorn, Katja, 2017, The genus Amegilla (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Anthophorini) in Australia: A revision of the subgenera Notomegilla and Zonamegilla, ZooKeys 653, pp. 79-140 : 106-109

Amegilla (Zonamegilla) alpha (Cockerell)

Figs 5 , 27

Sarapoda bombiformis var α Smith, 1854, p. 318.

Saropoda alpha Cockerell, 1904, p. 204.

Amegilla (Asaropoda) alpha (Cockerell) Michener, 1965, p. 217.

Material examined.

5 females and 1 male.

Type data.

Holotype of Amegilla alpha : male, (no locality data), BMNH 17B.669.

Diagnosis.

Amegilla alpha is easily distinguished from all other Australian Zonamegilla species by the orange hair covering the dorsal surface of the metasoma in both sexes, superficially resembling that in Asaropoda species. The yellow paraocular marks and facial profile of females, the unmodified apical margins of S4 and S5 of males, and for both sexes the presence of hairs in 1st medial cell and most other cells of the forewing, separate it from Asaropoda .

Redescription.

Female: Jasper Gorge 54km NW Victoria River Downs, 16.02S 130.41E, NT, 30 Apr. 1974, T.Weir & T. Angeles, MAGNT I004904.

Length 14 mm; forewing length 9 mm.

Structure. Head: clypeus protuberant, in profile 0.5 × width of eye; galea in repose reaching just reaching mid coxa; length of f1 3 × length of f2, 0.8 × length of scape (excluding basal bulb) and 1.7 × length of f10; f3-9 as long as wide; IOD 1.3 × OOD; OS 0.5 × OOD; length of marginal cell 0.8 × distance from apex of marginal cell to wing tip; cu-v of hind wing approximately half length of second abscissa of M+Cu; length of vein M of hind wing 1.7 times as long as second abscissa of M+Cu; length of jugal lobe about 0.5 × length of vannal lobe. Coloration. Yellow marks on labrum, mandibles, scape, clypeus, paraocular and supraclypeal areas; inverted T-shape on clypeus; distal part of flagellum brown ventrally from apex of f1. Pubescence. Head: labrum and clypeus with orange setae, pale yellow hairs intermixed with dark hairs on paraocular areas, frons, near ocelli and on vertex, darker near ocelli; gena white, pale ginger towards vertex. Thorax: scutum orange intermixed with black hairs; pleura orange with few black hairs under wing base, white ventrally; thoracic sterna orange; propodeum laterally orange with few black hairs. Legs: forefemur posteriorly with long white hair, outer surface of foretibia and -tarsus light orange, inner surface of tarsus brown; mid leg black, except light orange hair on apex of femur and on outer surface of tibia and basitarsus, hair on basitarsus lighter than on tibia; posterior proximal part of femur with a narrow line of light orange hair; hind legs black, except orange hair on apex of femur, scopa and basal part of basitarsus; basitibial streak brown, very short. Metasoma: apical hair bands on T1-T4 ginger with weak orange iridescence, parts not covered by hair bands dark orange; T5 laterally pale yellow (Fig. 27 ), fimbria brown, medial patch absent; pubescence as on T1-4; S3, S4 dark, posterolateral patches of pale yellow hairs; S5 dark. Punctation. Head: clypeus with dense to close, large, deep punctures, 0.1-0.5 puncture widths apart; labrum somewhat shiny, with close to dense, medium, deep punctures, 0.1-0.5 puncture widths apart. Thorax: scutum shiny, with close punctures, 0.2-1.0 puncture widths apart. Metasoma: T1-T5 with close to open punctures, 0.5-1.5 puncture widths apart.

Male: Holotype.

Length 11 mm; forewing length 7.5 mm.

Structure. Head: clypeus protuberant, in profile 0.4 × width of eye; length f1 2.1 × length f2, 0.6 × length scape (excluding basal bulb); length f3-10 1.1 × width; IOD 1.4 × OOD; OS 0.7 × OOD. Metasoma: apicomedial emargination of S5 wide, 40% of the sternal width, S6 with lateral depressions. Pubescence. Head: labrum white, re maining areas predominantly pale, darker towards vertex; scattered black robust hairs on clypeus laterally and in pale paraocular areas; gena white. Thorax: scutum orange-brown intermixed with black hairs; pleura light brown, white ventrally; propodeum laterally orange-brown with scattered black hairs. Legs: forefemur posteriorly with long white hairs, outer surface of tibia, tarsus orange-brown, inner surface of tarsus dark; mid legs black, except orange-brown hair on apex of femur, outer surface of tibia and basitarsus; hind legs black, except orange-brown hair on apex of femur, outer face of tibia and base of basitarsus. Metasoma: apical hair bands on T1-T5 orange-brown, elsewhere hair simple, open, orange-brown; S3-S5 medially dark, laterally orange.

Phenology.

Distribution.

(Fig. 5 ). The locality data given by Rayment (1951) as Toowoomba and Mackay does not fit the distribution as we know it. Since Rayment did not examine the type of Amegilla alpha , the basis of his statement about the distribution is unclear.

Figures

Figure 3 - 14. Distribution maps ● indicate museum record, ʘ indicates DNA specimen.

Figure 24 - 37. Apical tergites of females, especially T 5. 24 Amegilla aeruginosa 25 Amegilla chlorocyanea 26 Amegilla adelaidae 27 Amegilla alpha 28 Amegilla asserta 29 Amegilla cingulata 30 Amegilla indistincta 31 Amegilla karlba 32 Amegilla murrayensis 33 Amegilla paeninsulae 34 Amegilla pulchra 35 Amegilla thorogoodi 36 Amegilla viridicingulata 37 Amegilla walkeri.