Sphecodopsis nigra, Pöllein & Kuhlmann, 2025

Pöllein, Daniela & Kuhlmann, Michael, 2025, Taxonomic revision of the southern African bee genus Sphecodopsis Bischoff, 1923 (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Nomadinae), European Journal of Taxonomy 980, pp. 1-157 : 91-92

Sphecodopsis nigra sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:563CEA18-BB16-4C29-BEB8-4DD1F2AF9265

Figs 69–70

Diagnosis

The female of S. nigra sp. nov. is unknown. The male can be separated from that of all other species of the genus by the combination of the following characters: metasoma completely black ( Fig. 69B); head and mesosoma with white hair ( Fig. 69C–D).

Etymology

The name refers to the black colour of the species.

Type material (4 specimens)

Holotype

SOUTH AFRICA • ♂; Cape Town ; [33°57′ S, 18°27′ E]; Sep. 1913; GP leg.; SANC.

Paratypes

SOUTH AFRICA • 1 ♂; Cape Town ; [33°57′ S, 18°27′ E]; Sep. 1913; GP leg.; SANC • 2 ♂♂; Cape Town ; [33°57′ S, 18°27′ E]; 1913; GP leg.; RCMK .

Description

Female

Unknown.

Male

BODY LENGTH. 5.0– 5.5 mm.

HEAD. Head wider than long. Vertex slightly rounded, ocelli highest point. Integument black, except part of mandibles red. Face covered with long, white hair. Face with dense (i =0.25–0.5 d), coarse and deep punctation ( Fig. 69C). Surface between punctures slightly shiny. Antenna brown.

MESOSOMA. Integument black, tegula red. Mesoscutum slightly shiny. Mesoscutum and mesoscutellum densely (i= 0.5–1 d), coarsely and deeply punctate ( Fig. 69D). Propodeum with dense (i=0.5–1 d), fine and shallow punctation, metapostnotum matt ( Fig. 69E). Mesoscutum, mesoscutellum, metanotum and mesepisternum covered with long, white hair. Propodeum covered with short, white hair, metapostnotum glabrous ( Fig. 69D).

WINGS. Yellowish; wing venation red and stigma red ( Fig. 69A).

LEGS. Integument black. Coxa, trochanter, femur, tibia and tarsi sparsely covered with short, white hair ( Fig. 69A).

METASOMA. Integument of T1–T6 black, except T1 red apically. T1 and T2 with few short, white hair, from T3 increasingly more and longer hair ( Fig. 69B). T6 disc covered with long, white hair. T7 covered with short, white hair ( Fig. 69F).

TERMINALIA. Genitalia ( Fig. 70B–C) and terminal plate of S8 ( Fig. 70A) as illustrated. Unfortunately, S7 of this brittle and old specimen was lost during dissection.

Distribution

Only known from Cape Town.

Host bees

Unknown.

Seasonal activity

September.