Anthidium manicatum (Linnaeus)

Weissmann, Julie A., Picanco, Ana, Borges, Paulo A. V. & Schaefer, Hanno, 2017, Bees of the Azores: an annotated checklist (Apidae, Hymenoptera), ZooKeys 642, pp. 63-95 : 80-81

Anthidium manicatum (Linnaeus)

Description.

Total length 11-12 mm in females and 14-18 mm in males, wing length 8-10 mm in females and 9,5-12 mm in males; wings dark, face and legs yellow, body black with yellow spots and bands, tergite 7 of males with five black spine-like extensions (Fig. 9 a–b).

Distinguishing features.

Both sexes with conspicuous yellow-black abdominal patterns; can be confused only with similar looking syrphid flies or species of wasps, especially the introduced Vespula germanica , but differs from all these taxa in flight behaviour and abdominal pollen collection (in females).

General distribution.

Eurasia, North Africa; introduced in the Canaries, North and South America, New Zealand.

Distribution in the Azores.

Faial, São Miguel.

First record.

1857 ( Drouët 1861).

Nesting.

In existing holes; cell walls and closing plugs are built out of plant fibres.

Social behaviour.

Solitary.

Foraging.

Polylectic; preference for Lamiaceae , where the females also collect plant hairs for their nest, observed on Lotus corniculatus ( Fabaceae ).

Phenology.

July-September.

Material.

Faial (Horta), September 1952, 1 female ( Carthy 1955, not seen). São Miguel (Ponta Delgada), July 1992, leg. Wirtz, det. Warncke ( Wirtz 1994, not seen).