Protosmia (Nanosmia) magna, Müller, 2022

Müller, Andreas, 2022, New Moroccan bee species of the tribe Osmiini (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Megachilidae), Zootaxa 5188 (3), pp. 233-263 : 261-262

Protosmia (Nanosmia) magna spec. nov.

Holotype. MOROCCO: Guelmim-Oued Noun : 10 km E Guelmim, 15.– 16.4.1995, ♂ (leg. M. Halada). Deposited in the Entomological Collection of ETH Zurich.

Paratypes. MOROCCO: Souss-Massa : Icht, 100 km E Bouzakame, 4.5.1995, 1♀ (leg. M. Halada); GuelmimOued Noun: 10 km E Guelmim, 15.– 16.4.1995, 1♀, 3♂ (leg. M. Halada). Deposited in the Entomological Collection of ETH Zurich and the private collection of M. Schwarz (Ansfelden) .

Diagnosis. With a body length of 6–7 mm, P. magna is much larger than all other Protosmia species of the subgenus Nanosmia , whose body length hardly exceeds 5 mm. Additional characters of the female are the coarse punctation between lateral ocellus and compound eye interspersed with micropunctures ( Fig. 64 ) and the blackish mid and hind tibial spurs. Further typical characters of the male are the deep oval preapical depression of tergum 6 and the minutely serrate apical margin of tergum 6 ( Fig. 65 ).

Description. FEMALE ( Fig. 62 ): Body length 6–6.5 mm. Head: Head about 0.9x as long as wide. Distance between lateral ocellus and preoccipital margin about 1.2x as long as ocellar diameter. Maximum width of genal area 0.65–0.7x as long as maximum width of compound eye. Mandible three-toothed and of black colour except for more or less extended dark reddish-brown preapical zone. Punctation of face very dense with usually only linear interspaces; punctures on frons and paraocular area slightly larger than on supraclypeal area and clypeus. Punctation between lateral ocellus and compound eye rather coarse with maximum of 5–7 punctures in a row and interspersed with micropunctures ( Fig. 64 ). Clypeus with narrow marginal zone, which is distinctly finer and more densely punctured than disc; its apical margin medially straight to slightly rounded and irregularly crenulated. Face sparsely beset with r ather long and (sub)erect whitish hairs except for clypeus, whose whitish pilosity is shorter, more appressed and interspersed with single long hairs. Proboscis of medium length; second segment of labial palpus about 0.7x as long as compound eye and 2.25–2.35x as long as first segment. Antenna dark brown to black; antennal segment 3 about as long as wide and 1.75x as long as segment 4, segments 4–8 shorter than wide, 9–11 as long as wide and segment 12 about 1.7x as long as wide. Mesosoma: Parapsidal line linear. Pronotal lobe with inconspicuous transverse carinulae, its anterior margin weakly keeled.Punctation of scutum and mesepisternum dense with interspaces rarely reaching diameter of one puncture, of scutellum more scattered with interspaces reaching diameter of one to two punctures; interspaces of scutum, scutellum and mesepisternum with micropunctures. Basal area of propodeum polished except for narrow transversal zone at its base, which is distinctly shagreened. Pilosity of mesosoma laterally whitish and dorsally yellowish-white; apical margin of scutellum sparsely beset with very long yellowish hairs. Tegula dark brown and densely punctured over entire surface. Stigma and veins of fore wing predominantly dark brown to black. Tibial spur of fore leg apically extended into rather long tip, which is about 1.5x as long as basally wide. Tibial spurs of hind leg dark brown and apically curved upwards at angle of about 20; inner spur about 0.4x as long as maximum inner length of tibia of hind leg. Pilosity of inner surface of basitarsus of hind leg yellowish-white. Metasoma: Punctation of tergal discs 1–3 laterally dense with interspaces rarely reaching diameter of one puncture and medially slightly more scattered with interspaces reaching diameter of one to two punctures. Punctation of tergal discs 4–6 very dense with interspaces rarely exceeding diameter of half a puncture. Punctation of marginal zones of terga slightly finer than of discs and extended till apical tergal margin. Marginal zones of terga 1–4 narrowly dark reddish- to yellowish-brown and beset with uninterrupted and short white hair bands. Scopa white.

MALE ( Fig. 63 ): Body length 6–7 mm. Head: Head about 0.9x as long as wide. Distance between lateral ocellus and preoccipital margin about 1.3x as long as ocellar diameter. Maximum width of genal area about 0.6x as long as maximum width of compound eye. Mandible two-toothed and of black colour except sometimes for dark reddish-brown preapical zone. Apical margin of clypeus crenulated. Face covered with long whitish pilosity, which is rather sparse and (sub)erect on frons and supraclypeal area but dense and more or less appressed on paraocular area and clypeus. Proboscis of medium length; second segment of labial palpus about 0.65x as long as compound eye and about 2.2x as long as first segment. Antenna dark brown to black; antennal segment 3 about as long as wide and as long as segment 4, which is shorter than wide, segment 5 about as long as wide, segments 6–12 longer than wide and segment 13 about twice as long as wide. Mesosoma: Parapsidal line linear. Pronotal lobe with inconspicuous transverse carinulae, its anterior margin weakly keeled. Punctation of scutum and mesepisternum dense with interspaces rarely reaching diameter of one puncture, of scutellum more scattered with interspaces reaching diameter of one to two punctures; interspaces of scutum, scutellum and mesepisternum with micropunctures. Basal area of propodeum polished except for narrow transversal zone at its base, which is distinctly shagreened. Pilosity of mesosoma laterally whitish and dorsally yellowish-white; apical margin of scutellum sparsely beset with very long yellowish hairs. Tegula dark brown and densely punctured over entire surface. Stigma and veins of fore wing predominantly dark brown to black. Tibial spur of fore leg apically extended into moderately long tip, which is about 1.5x as long as basally wide. Tibial spurs of hind leg dark brown and apically curved upwards at angle of about 20; inner spur about 0.3x as long as maximum inner length of tibia of hind leg. Metasoma: Punctation of tergal discs 1–3 laterally dense with interspaces rarely reaching diameter of one puncture and medially slightly more scattered with interspaces reaching diameter of one to two punctures. Punctation of tergal discs 4–5 very dense with interspaces rarely exceeding diameter of half a puncture. Punctation of marginal zones of terga finer than of discs and extended till apical tergal margin. Marginal zones of terga 1–3(4) narrowly reddish- to yellowish-brown and beset with uninterrupted and short white hair bands. Tergum 6 basally with impressed and narrow zone, preapically with deep oval and sparsely punctured depression and apically distinctly bent upwards ( Fig. 65 ); apical margin of tergum 6 medially evenly rounded, minutely serrate and laterally with prominent large edge ( Fig. 65 ). Tergum 7 completely hidden under tergum 6 ( Fig. 65 ). Sternum 1 large and strongly convex with dense punctation on basal half and scattered punctation on apical half, its apical margin medially very weakly emarginate ( Fig. 66 ). Sternum 2 medially with dense and roof-shaped tuft of whitish hairs, which is hidden under sternum 1; apical margin of sternum 2 with median emargination, which is beset with long and inwardly directed whitish bristles and filled with transparent membrane. Sternum 3 densely covered with appressed whitish pilosity, its apical margin emarginate and beset with long and inwardly directed yellowish-white bristles ( Fig. 66 ). Apical margin of sternum 4 evenly rounded ( Fig. 66 ). Sternum 5 medioapically with deep and narrowly triangular incision, its apical margin medially with numerous minute, spatulate and brown bristles ( Fig. 66 ). Sternum 6 medioapically projecting and laterobasally with long, narrow and slightly curved membraneous flap ( Fig. 66 ). Gonoforceps long, narrow, of approximately the same width along its entire length and slightly bent inwards in its apical half. Penis valve distinctly shorter than gonoforceps.

Distribution. Southernmost Souss-Massa region and Guelmim-Oued Noun region in southern Morocco.

Pollen hosts. Unknown.

Nesting biology. Unknown.

Etymology. The species epithet refers to the large body size (magnus = lat. large) compared to all other P. ( Nanosmia ) species.

Figures

FIGURES 57–66. Osmia (Nasutosmia) longipalpa: 57: Female, 58: Male, 59: Labial palpi of female. Protosmia (Nanosmia) curviseta: 60: Female, 61: Labial palpi of female. Protosmia (Nanosmia) magna: 62: Female, 63: Male, 64: Vertex between compound eye and lateral ocellus of female, 65: Terga 5–6 of male, 66: Sterna 1–6 of male.