Rhynostelis multiplicata (Smith, 1879)

Urban, Danuncia & Parizotto, Daniele Regina, 2012, A revised key to the Neotropical cleptoparasitic anthidiine genera (Hymenoptera, Megachilinae) with notes and description of the male of Rhynostelis Moure & Urban, ZooKeys 249, pp. 27-35 : 29-31

Rhynostelis multiplicata (Smith, 1879) Figs 1-715, 17

Anthidium multiplicatum Smith 1879: 87.

Rhynostelis multiplicata ; Moure and Urban 1995: 298.

Hoplostelis (Rhynostelis) multiplicata ; Michener 2007: 518.

Diagnosis.

Integument black, with wide yellow areas in both sexes. Scutum with a large, reverse U-shaped macula; scutellum almost totally yellow; axillae yellow and all terga with yellow bands (Figs 3, 4). Male and female with protuberant clypeus.

Male description.

Approximate body length 13.29; forewing length 10.45; head width 4.02; head length 3.67; eye length 2.55. Head integument yellow except: distal margin of mandible and apical tooth black; labrum blackened; frons black, bands above superior margin of antennal sockets extending to vertex, including ocelli and finely attached with black spot above compound eyes. Antennae with ventral face of pedicel darkish yellow, remaining segments light brown; dorsal face with scape and pedicel light brown and flagellum amber (Figs 1, 2). Pronotal lobe yellow; scutum black with large reverse U-shaped yellow maculae; scutellum with on yellow gibbous area joined medially by fine yellow band; axillae yellow; metanotum brown and propodeum yellow. Mesepisternum and metepisternum yellow; mesepisternum with discal black spot, metepisternum with ventral area black. Tegula amber and wing membrane brown. Legs almost totally yellow; middle tibiae with internal darkish area and hind tibiae with large internal darkish area (Figs 3, 4, 5). Terga black; basal tergum with yellow band slightly angled at middle; second to fourth with large yellow band, slightly narrower and slightly interrupted medially; fifth tergum with yellow band emarginated at middle on posterior margin; sixth tergum with yellow band, wider medially; distal tergum with subapical yellow band and blackish margin (Fig. 6). Two basal sterna yellow, with large translucent margin; third to fifth yellow with black infumated area on apical half; sixth sternum with large median black apical spot.

Pubescence. Light yellow with predominantly short hairs (less than ocellus diameter). Pilosity longer and denser among ocelli, above antennal sockets and clypeus apex. Hairs of mesepisternum little longer than mesoscutum, curved on scutellum and propodeum. Fore leg with coxa and trochanter covered by dense pilosity. Third to fifth sterna with apical dense and long slight curved hairs.

Sculpturing. Head finely punctate with sparser punctures on clypeal protuberance and at supraclypeal area. Mandibles with punctures smaller than that of head. Mesoscutum with integument microreticulated, punctures deeper than head. Gibbous area of mesepisternum with larger and sparser punctures; distance between punctures at least half width a puncture diameter. Punctures of terga fine and shallow; punctures on yellow bands larger and sparser than those on black areas.

Material examined. BRAZIL, Pará, Belém: one male, "IPEAN [Instituto de Pesquisas e Experimentação Agropecuária do Norte, Belém] / 105-2 / EU" (DZUP); and one female "IPEAN / 105-1/ EU" (DZUP). Amazonas, Manaus: one female "Proj. DBFF.WWF/ Manaus-AM/ Brasil 04/11/89 / M. B. V. Garcia (DZUP).

Remarks on the female from Pará. Approximate body length 16.13; forewing length 12.38; head width 4.90; length head 4.16, eye length 3.18. Integument predominantly yellow. The female differs from the male as follows: black maculae on vertex and frons larger than in male. All terga with yellow bands; basal tergum with complete band; second and third terga with bands slightly interrupted at middle; fourth tergum with band interrupted anteriorly only at middle, fifth tergum with band interrupted only posteriorly at middle; sixth tergum with subapical band and blackish margin. All sterna yellow; distal sternum with medioapical spot and black margin. The female collected in Manaus is a little smaller than the female from Belém and the integument of the head is darker and with irregular macula. Such differences in color might be caused by some chemical product used during collection or preservation.

Host records. Urban and Moure (1995) commented that one female of Rhynostelis multiplicata emerged from a test-tube placed on a termite nest where an orchid bee was previously seen (possible Eufrisea pulchra (Smith, 1854)). However, the record of the host was never confirmed. The specimens from Belém studied herein emerged from one nest of Eufriesea laniventris (Ducke, 1902), (DZUP), according the identification of Dr. Gabriel A. R. Melo. Thus, the cleptoparasitism of Rhynostelis multiplicata on orchid bees of the genus Eufriesea is confirmed.

Identification key to the neotropical cleptoparasitic genera of Anthidiini