Osmia (Hemiosmia) chrysolepta Haeseler, 2005

Müller, Andreas, 2020, Palaearctic Osmia bees of the subgenera Hemiosmia, Tergosmia and Erythrosmia (Megachilidae, Osmiini): biology, taxonomy and key to species, Zootaxa 4778 (2), pp. 201-236 : 212

Osmia (Hemiosmia) chrysolepta Haeseler, 2005

Osmia (Hemiosmia) chrysolepta Haeseler, 2005: 479 . Type material: Holotype ♂, “ Tel-Aviv ” ( Israel), private collection of M. Schwarz ( Ansfelden ).

Literature records. EGYPT: Hunka Mare ( Haeseler 2005). ISRAEL AND PALESTINE: Central District (Netanya), Haifa District (Ma’agan Michael, Zikhron Yá Aqov), Northern District (Nahariya), Tel Aviv District (Bat Yam, Tel Aviv) ( Haeseler 2005). JORDAN: Aqaba (Aqaba) ( Haeseler 2005).

New records. ISRAEL AND PALESTINE: Central District: Yaqum , 32°25ʹN / 34°85ʹE, 10.3.2010, 1♀, 1♂ (leg. S. Watts) ; Haifa District: Northern Coastal Plain, Ma’agan Mikhael beach, 32º33ʹ21ʺN / 34º54ʹ25ʺE, 6.4.2011, 4f, 3m (leg. A. Dorchin) ; Southern District : 2 km N Kemehin, 30°55ʹ45ʺN / 34°24ʹ40ʺE, 210 m, 27.4.2010, 1♀ (leg. C. Praz, C. Sedivy) ; Tel Aviv District : Bat Jam, 15.4.1946, 1♀, 1♂ (leg. H. Bytinski-Salz) . JORDAN: Aqaba: 80 km NE Aqaba , 8.4.1989, 1♀, 1♂ (leg. J. Gusenleitner) . LIBYA: Al-Wahat: Marsa el Brega , 30°25ʹ27ʺN / 19°38ʹ25ʺE, 28.2.– 20.3.2013, 2♀, 1♂ (leg. A. Haris) .

Distribution. From eastern Libya over Egypt to the Levant ( Israel and Palestine, Jordan). To the present knowledge, the range of O. chrysolepta does not overlap with that of the more westernly distributed O. anceps .

Pollen hosts. Oligolectic on Fabaceae (Tab. 1) with strong preference for Loteae (e.g. Lotus ); additional pollen hosts are species of Genisteae and other Fabaceae tribes. Four out of 18 scopal loads analysed contained small amounts of pollen of Echium (Boraginaceae) and Zygophyllaceae , suggesting that flowers of these two plant taxa might very rarely also be exploited.

Nesting biology. Unknown.