Hylaeus (Spatulariella) decipiens

Risch, Stephan, Roberts, Stuart P. M., Smit, Jan, Wood, Thomas J., Michez, Denis & Reverté, Sara, 2023, The new annotated checklist of the wild bees of Europe (Hymenoptera: Anthophila), Zootaxa 5327 (1), pp. 1-147 : 49

Hylaeus (Spatulariella) decipiens F̂rster, 1871

This species was overlooked in the previous European checklists. Erlandsson (1987) restored the specific status of Hylaeus decipiens that was previously considered to be a synonym of H. hyalinatus Smith, 1842 ( Dathe 1980) . The examination of the holotype ( Germany, Götting, ♁, Giraud collection, MNHN) however reveals that H. decipiens is a distinct species from H. hyalinatus Smith, 1842 , as Erlandsson (1987) suggested ( Le Divelec 2021a). On the other hand, Erlandsson (1987) did not take into account the numerous subspecies within Spatulariella described by Pittioni (1950) and Warncke (1981) of which the taxonomic status is still unclear. In addition, Erlandsson (1987) placed great emphasis on coloration, whereas this character is unreliable and highly variable in this group. The published diagnoses for this taxon are therefore unreliable, the association of sexes has to be confirmed and the distribution to be reviewed. It should be noted that the species was described by F̂rster (1871) based on material collected by J. Giraud from Ĝtting, whereas Giraud in his catalogue (https://science.mnhn.fr/catalogue/ey-bib-giraud2/page/234) wrote that his specimens of H. decipiens were collected on the French Alps. Awaiting a taxonomic revision of the subgenus, we consider H. decipiens as a valid species and include it in the present checklist.