Austrosphecodes lucifer, Gonçalves & Pereira, 2022

Gonçalves, Rodrigo Barbosa & Pereira, Felipe Walter, 2022, New species of the cuckoo bee genus Austrosphecodes Michener, 1978 (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Sphecodini) and a key for Brazilian species, European Journal of Taxonomy 819, pp. 55-89 : 77-79

Austrosphecodes lucifer sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:334ED3D5-7B87-4695-9AC5-D9A880AA408A

Figs 7 , 10C

Diagnosis

This species differs from the majority of other species by the densely punctate metasoma, similar to A. krampus sp. nov, but it can be distinguished by its densely punctate mesoscutum, rugulose anteriorly, punctate scutellum, and the lineolate terga. The only known female has a body length about 10 mm. Males are densely sculptured as the female, have dark flagellomeres and submarginal rows of setae (1.5 od) on S3–5.

Etymology

A mythological and religious figure associated with the planet Venus, the morning star; a common devil's name. The name is used as a proper noun in apposition.

Material examined

Holotype BRAZIL – Rio Grande do Sul • ♀; “ DZUP/568517 ” “Brasil, Rio Grande do Sul,\ 10 km a ESE de Terra de\ Areia, 29 36S 49 58W,\ 17.xi.2002, G. A. R. Melo ”; deposited in the Coleção Entomológica Pe. Jesus Santiago Moure, Curitiba, Brazil; DZUP 568517.

Paratypes BRAZIL – Rio Grande do Sul • 2 ♂♂; “Brasil, RS, Osório , 05.xi.2017 \ 29 55 32S 50 13 19W,\ E. Almeida and D. Lucena, leg.”; RPSP.

Description

Female

MEASUREMENTS. Head width 2.2 mm, length 1.8 mm; intertegular distance 1.5 mm; body length about 10.0 mm.

HEAD. Labrum black. Mandible dark amber with brown apex; long setae on outer and ventral margin, more concentrated on base. Clypeus black; sulcate; basal margin arcuate in the middle; loosely punctate; sparse long decumbent setae on middle; small concentration of long decumbent setae on lateral margins. Supraclypeal area black; densely punctate (i <pd); dull interspaces; plumose decumbent setae absent in the middle, present on middle of antennae insertions and below antennae. Paraocular area black; densely punctate; dull interspaces; densely covered with whitish decumbent plumose setae on middle to bottom; upper densely punctate (i <pd) to rugose, punctures almost touching themselves; few short erect setae. Antennae mostly black; brownish on ventral surfaces of flagellomeres; scape long, almost reaching mid ocellus; few erect setae on scape; scape punctate to sparsely punctate, mostly polished; flagellomeres homogeneous covered with short whitish setae. Frons black; densely punctate (i<pd); dull interspaces; sparse long erect setae; weakly depressed above supraclypeal area. Vertex punctate to rugose, less punctate and more polished near gena; few short erect setae. Gena rugose-carinate; imbricate; loosely rugose on lateral view, imbricate; densely covered with decumbent whitish setae.

MESOSOMA. Pronotum rugose; covered with long whitish setae dorsally; weakly covered with tomentum on lateral view; imbricate near pronotal lobe. Posterior margin of pronotum covered with tomentum. Prosternum black; imbricate; weakly covered with tomentum in the middle. Fore leg. Coxa black; dull; imbricate; covered with whitish long setae; trochanter black; imbricate; few setae; femur black on base and brown on apex; imbricate; sparse erect setae; tibia amber; tibial spur serrate on apex, with one sharp tooth. Mesoscutum black; anterior border rugose; disc densely punctate (i<pd), dull; median sulcus weak. Mesepisternum black; coarsely rugose, not polished; sparse whitish long setae on lateral view; weakly covered with whitish setae on ventral surface. Mid leg. Coxa black; dull; imbricate; covered with whitish long setae; trochanter dark amber; imbricate; few setae; femur dark brown on base and lighter on apex; imbricate; sparse erect setae; tibia amber; one simple tibial spur. Tegula amber; concentric lineolate; polished in the middle. Fore wing with 3 submarginal cells. Scutellum black; dull; densely on disc. Metanotum black; rugulose; mostly covered with tomentum. Metepisternum rugose and dull; more carinate near tegula; weakly covered with tomentum. Hind leg. Coxa black to dark amber; dull; imbricate; presence of long whitish setae; trochanter dark amber; imbricate; few setae; femur dark brown on base and lighter on apex; imbricate; sparse erect setae; tibia amber. Hind wing with 7 hamuli. Metapostnotum weakly concave; margin rounded; densely areolate. Latero-dorsal surface gently declivitous, scrobiculate. Propodeum densely covered with tomentum.

METASOMA. T1 dark amber; densely punctuate. T2 dark amber; punctulate; short setae on anterior margin; posterior margin mostly polished. T3 dark amber; punctulate, imbricate; setae on anterior margin to middle; longer sparse setae on middle; T4 black; imbricate; setae on anterior margin to middle; longer sparse setae on middle. T5 black; mostly imbricate; weakly covered with long setae. Pygidial plate

black; dull; without setae. S1–S3 amber; imbricate; few sparse setae. S4 black on posterior margin; imbricate; sparse setae. S5–S6 black; imbricate; few sparse long erect setae.

Male

Measurements: head width 1.8 mm, length 1.8 mm; intertegular distance 1.3 mm; body length about 7.0 mm. As the female except as described. Clypeus, supraclypeal area and lower particular with scattered plumose setae; antennae dark brown, scape not reaching mid ocellus; vertex coarsely punctate. Sterna 3–5 with a submarginal row of long setae (1.5 od).

Figures

Fig. 7. Austrosphecodes lucifersp. nov. A–C. Holotype, ♀ (DZUP 568517). D–F. Paratype, ♂. A. Female head. B. Female mesosoma. C. Female propodeum and metasoma. D. Male head. E. Male mesosoma. F. Male metasoma. Scale bar =1 mm.

Fig. 10. Geographic records map. A. Austrosphecodes asmodeus sp. nov., A. balrog sp. nov., A. brasiliensis (Schrottky, 1910). B. A. cerberus sp. nov., A gorgon sp. nov., A. inornatus (Schrottky, 1902). C. A. jurupari sp. nov., A. krampus sp. nov., A. lucifer sp. nov. D. A. minarum (Schrottky, 1910), A. orcus sp. nov., A. tartarus sp. nov.