The ‘ red-tailed’ Lasioglossum (Dialictus) (Hymenoptera: Halictidae) of the western Nearctic
Author
Gardner, Joel
AA15FE6E-921A-46D6-BC67-88E067F283D9
0000-0003-1843-466X
Department of Entomology, University of Manitoba, 12 Dafoe Rd., Winnipeg, Manitoba, R 3 T 2 N 2, Canada.
clickbeetle3364@gmail.com
Author
Gibbs, Jason
BA42A49F-3EBC-4679-8F03-A58E798106B1
0000-0002-4945-5423
Department of Entomology, University of Manitoba, 12 Dafoe Rd., Winnipeg, Manitoba, R 3 T 2 N 2, Canada.
jason.gibbs@umanitoba.ca
text
European Journal of Taxonomy
2020
2020-11-27
725
1
242
journal article
10.5852/ejt.2020.725.1167
9e062836-3946-4ac6-8910-304cadff0d4b
2118-9773
4298139
89FA8DDF-F4B9-417A-A5AF-B2BC9660E024
Lasioglossum
(
Dialictus
)
pallidellum
(
Ellis, 1914
)
Figs 67–69
,
90K
,
100A
,
104A
Halictus pallidellus
Ellis, 1914a: 151
(
holotype
,
♀
, deposited in UCMC, examined).
Halictus
(
Chloralictus
)
pallidellus
–
Sandhouse 1924: 4
(key).
Lasioglossum
(
Chloralictus
)
pallidellum
–
Michener 1951: 1116
(catalog).
Dialictus pallidellus
–
Hurd 1979: 1969
(catalog). —
Moure & Hurd 1987: 119
(catalog).
Lasioglossum
(
Dialictus
)
pallidellum
–
Gibbs 2010: 234
, fig. 169a–c (key, redescription). —
Scott
et al
. 2011: 30
(checklist).
Diagnosis
Females of
Lasioglossum pallidellum
can be recognized by most of the body covered in very dense white tomentum, head and mesosoma shiny and sparsely punctate (i =1–3 pd), metapostnotum shiny with weak rugae not reaching the rounded posterior margin, face short (length/width ratio ~0.78), and T2–4 with dark spiracular spots. They are most similar to
L
.
julipile
sp. nov.
Females of
L
.
julipile
sp. nov.
have the metapostnotum with strong rugae reaching the posterior margin and T2 without dark spiracular spots.
Males of
L
.
pallidellum
can be recognized by the same characters as for females, although the metapostnotal rugae are sometimes stronger and nearly reaching the posterior margin, and the dark spiracular spots are only visible in red-tailed forms. In addition, they have the flagellomeres relatively short (F2 about 1.75 times as long as F1 and 1.25 times as long as broad), gonocoxite very broad, and gonostylus large and boot-shaped. They are most similar to
L
.
julipile
sp. nov.
Males of
L
.
julipile
sp. nov.
have the mesosoma and metasoma with less extensive tomentum (especially noticeable on T2–4 basolaterally), metasoma always completely black, and gonocoxite and gonostylus narrower with no unusual modifications.
Etymology
Ellis (1914a)
named this species from the Latin adjective ‘
pallidus
’ (‘pale’, ‘ashen’) and the diminutive suffix ‘-
ellus
’.
Material examined
Holotype
UNITED STATES
–
New Mexico
•
♀
;
Roswell
; [
33.39° N
,
104.52° W
];
14 Apr.
;
Cockerell
leg.;
ex
Prunus
;
UCMC
.
Other material
MEXICO
–
Coahuila
•
1 ♀
;
18 km
S of Cuatrociénegas
;
26.8667° N
,
102.1333° W
;
920 m
a.s.l.
;
27 Mar. 1992
;
D. Yanega
leg.;
ex
Prosopis glandulosa
;
SEMC
•
4 ♀♀
;
Churince Spring
,
18 km
S of Cuatrociénegas
; [
26.84° N
,
102.134° W
];
15 Feb. 2000
;
R.L. Minckley
leg.;
ex
Acacia greggii
;
RLM
. –
Nuevo Leon
•
1 ♀
;
2.7 km
S of El Refugio de Cedilla
;
23.9825° N
,
100.294583° W
;
1973 m
a.s.l.
;
18 Sep. 2008
;
G.R. Ballmer
leg.;
SEMC
.
UNITED STATES
–
Arizona
•
2 ♀♀
;
Cochise Co.
,
Willcox
; [
32.25° N
,
109.83° W
];
Aug. 2005
;
L. Packer
leg.;
PCYU
•
1 ♀
;
Willcox
; [
32.25° N
,
109.83° W
]; 2005;
L. Packer
leg.;
PCYU
. –
California
•
1 ♀
;
Fresno Co.
,
Mendota
; [
36.75° N
,
120.38° W
];
23 Apr. 1949
;
J.W. MacSwain
and
R.F. Smith
leg.;
ex
Melilotus
;
EMEC
•
2 ♀♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
2 km
NW of Swansea
; [
36.54° N
,
117.93° W
];
19 Sep. 1993
;
T. Griswold
leg.;
ex
Ericameria nauseosa
var.
nauseosa
;
BBSL
•
3 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
19 Sep. 1993
;
T. Griswold
leg.;
ex
Oxystylis lutea
;
BBSL
•
2 ♀♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
2.9 mi.
S of Shoshone
; [
35.929° N
,
116.269° W
];
18 Oct. 1956
;
A.C. Dickson
leg.;
ex
Aplopappus
;
UCRC
•
1 ♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
3.5 mi.
W of Lone Pine
; [
36.6° N
,
118.125° W
];
8 Jul. 1961
;
H.V. Daly
leg.;
EMEC
•
3 ♀♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
Death Valley Junction
;
36.3142° N
,
116.4567° W
;
671 m
a.s.l.
;
19 Sep. 2013
;
M.C. Orr
leg.;
ex
Cleomella obtusifolia
;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
Eureka Dunes
,
North inner
;
37.0986° N
,
117.6776° W
;
20 Apr. 1999
;
R. Andrus
and
T. Griswold
leg.;
ex
Astragalus lentiginosus
;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
Keeler
; [
36.49° N
,
117.87° W
];
28 Aug. 1977
;
E.G. and J.M. Linsley
leg.;
ex
Tamarix aralensis
;
EMEC
•
1 ♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
Lone Pine Creek
; [
36.6° N
,
118.085° W
];
1219 m
a.s.l.
;
31 Aug. 1969
;
R.M. Bohart
leg.;
UCDC
•
1 ♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
Saline Valley
,
Salt Lake
; [
36.7° N
,
117.82° W
];
323 m
a.s.l.
;
23 May 1976
;
D. Giuliani
leg.;
LACM
•
1 ♀
; same location as for preceding;
7 Jun. 1976
;
D. Giuliani
leg.;
LACM
•
1 ♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
Saline Valley
,
Upper Warm Spring
; [
36.813° N
,
117.766° W
];
579 m
a.s.l.
;
6 Apr. 1976
;
D. Giuliani
leg.;
LACM
•
2 ♀♀
;
Inyo Co.
,
Shoshone
; [
35.97° N
,
116.27° W
];
22 Sep. 1966
;
J.C. Hall
leg.;
ex
Oxystylis lutea
;
UCRC
•
1 ♀
;
Lassen Co.
,
Amedee
; [
40.3° N
,
120.2° W
];
4 Jul. 1947
;
T.F. Leigh
leg.;
EMEC
•
1 ♀
;
San Bernardino Co.
,
9 air mi. S of Baker, sand dunes S of Zzyzx Springs
; [
35.14° N
,
116.1° W
];
27 Apr. 1977
;
Powell
leg.;
EMEC
•
2 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
27 Apr. 1977
;
J. Doyen
leg.;
ex
Cleomella obtusifolia
;
EMEC
•
3 ♀♀
;
San Bernardino Co.
,
9 air mi. S of Baker, Zzyzx Springs
; [
35.14° N
,
116.1° W
];
22 Apr. 1977
;
Powell
leg.;
ex
Cleomella obtusifolia
;
EMEC
•
2 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
23 Apr. 1977
;
Powell
leg.;
ex
Cleomella obtusifolia
;
EMEC
•
2 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
20 Apr. 1977
;
R. Cave
leg.;
EMEC
•
4 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
20 Apr. 1977
;
J. Doyen
leg.;
ex
Tamarix
;
EMEC
•
1 ♀
; same location as for preceding;
20–21 Apr. 1977
;
M. Buegler
leg.;
EMEC
•
1 ♀
;
San Bernardino Co.
,
Zzyzx Spring
;
35.1333° N
,
116.1° W
;
22–24 May 1982
;
J.P. and K.E.S. Donahue
leg.;
AMNH
•
28 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
22–24 May 1982
;
J.P. and K.E.S. Donahue
leg.;
LACM
•
1 ♀
;
San Bernardino Co.
,
Zzyzx Springs
; [
35.14° N
,
116.1° W
];
22 Apr. 1984
;
Dan Sandri
leg.;
EMEC
•
4 ♀♀
;
San Bernardino Co.
,
Zzyzx Springs
,
9 mi.
S of Baker
; [
35.14° N
,
116.1° W
];
18–28 Apr. 1984
;
P. Martin
leg.;
EMEC
•
3 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
21–23 Apr. 1984
;
EMEC
•
1 ♀
;
Tulare Co.
,
Wood Lake
; [
36.41° N
,
119.1° W
];
1 May 1947
;
Norman W. Frazier
leg.;
EMEC
•
1 ♀
;
1.3 mi.
E of Little Rock
; [
34.52° N
,
117.96° W
];
13 Sep. 1950
;
Timberlake
leg.;
ex
Gutierrezia microcephala
;
UCRC
•
1 ♀
;
12 mi.
SE of Palm Springs
; [
33.71° N
,
116.39° W
];
12 Nov. 1952
;
Timberlake
leg.;
ex
Eriogonum trichopes
;
UCRC
•
2 ♀♀
;
Twentynine Palms
; [
34.13° N
,
116.06° W
];
9 Aug. 1946
;
Timberlake
leg.;
ex
Wislizenia refracta
;
UCRC
•
3 ♀♀
; same location as for preceding;
4 Aug. 1933
;
Timberlake
leg.;
ex
Wislizenia refracta
;
UCRC
•
1 ♀
; same location as for preceding; 1946;
A.L. Melander
leg.;
UCRC
•
1 ♀
;
5 mi.
N of Lancaster
; [
34.75° N
,
118.15° W
];
29 Sep. 1956
;
Timberlake
leg.;
ex
Isocoma acradenia
;
UCRC
•
1 ♀
;
Lancaster
; [
34.69° N
,
118.15° W
];
10 Oct. 1936
;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
;
Olancha
; [
36.28° N
,
118.01° W
];
2 May 1927
;
Timberlake
leg.;
ex
Salix exigua
;
UCRC
•
1 ♀
;
Saratoga Springs
,
Death Valley
; [
35.681° N
,
116.423° W
];
16–19 Jun. 1954
;
Belkin
and
McDonald
leg.;
LACM
•
1 ♀
; same location as for preceding;
23–24 Apr. 1955
;
LACM
. –
Idaho
•
1 ♀
;
Twin Falls
; [
42.56° N
,
114.47° W
];
25 Aug. 1927
;
V.E. Romney
leg.;
MTEC
.
–
Nevada
•
1 ♀
;
Humboldt Co.
,
Valmy
; [
40.79° N
,
117.13° W
];
25 May 1957
;
J.C. Hall
leg.;
UCDC
•
1 ♀
;
Lincoln Co.
,
Alamo
; [
37.36° N
,
115.16° W
];
31 Jul. 1958
;
F.D. Parker
leg.;
UCDC
•
1 ♀
; same location as for preceding;
30 Jul. 1968
;
F.D. Parker
leg.;
UCDC
•
2 ♀♀
;
Nye Co.
,
Beatty
; [
36.91° N
,
116.76° W
];
4 Aug. 1950
;
J.W. MacSwain
leg.;
ex
Melilotus
;
EMEC
. –
New Mexico
•
1 ♀
;
Hidalgo Co.
,
9 mi.
N of Cotton City
; [
32.21° N
,
108.88° W
];
11 Aug. 1978
;
R.W. Brooks
leg.;
SEMC
•
1 ♀
,
1 ♂
;
25 mi.
W of Tularosa
; [
33.07° N
,
106.45° W
];
1 Jul. 1940
;
D.E. Hardy
leg.;
SEMC
•
1 ♀
,
1 ♂
; same location as for preceding;
1 Jul. 1940
;
L.C. Kuitert
leg.;
SEMC
•
1 ♂
; same location as for preceding;
1 Jul. 1940
;
R H. Beamer
leg.;
SEMC
•
1 ♂
;
Estancia
; [
34.76° N
,
106.06° W
];
24 Jun. 1940
;
R.H. Beamer
leg.;
SEMC
•
1 ♂
;
Moriarty
; [
34.99° N
,
106.05° W
];
24 Jun. 1940
;
R.H. Beamer
leg.;
SEMC
. –
Texas
•
3 ♀♀
;
Bailey Co.
,
Muleshoe Wildlife Refuge
,
Grassland 2
;
33.9302° N
,
102.4861° W
;
15 Apr. 2013
;
S.J. Galdek
leg.;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
;
Bailey Co.
,
Muleshoe Wildlife Refuge
,
Prairie Dog 2
;
33.9302° N
,
102.7584° W
;
15 Apr. 2013
;
S.J. Galdek
leg.;
BBSL
. –
Utah
•
2 ♀♀
;
Emery Co.
,
1.5 mi.
NE of Little Gilson Butte
; [
38.6° N
,
110.58° W
];
1539 m
a.s.l.
;
23 Jul. 1981
;
Parker
,
Veirs
and
Griswold
leg.;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
;
Emery Co.
,
2 mi.
E of Little Gilson Butte
; [
38.59° N
,
110.57° W
];
1554 m
a.s.l.
;
23 Jul. 1981
;
Parker
,
Veirs
and
Griswold
leg.;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
;
Emery Co.
,
above Little Wild Horse Canyon SW of Goblin Vly
; [
38.55° N
,
110.82° W
];
1463 m
a.s.l.
;
26 Jul. 1983
;
Parker
and
Griswold
leg.;
BBSL
•
4 ♀♀
;
Emery Co.
,
Wild Horse Creek N of Goblin Vly
;
38.5962° N
,
110.7071° W
;
1494 m
a.s.l.
;
25–28 Jul. 1983
;
Parker
and
Griswold
leg.;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
,
1 ♂
; same location as for preceding;
21–23 Jul. 1981
;
Veirs
,
Parker
and
Griswold
leg.;
BBSL
•
1 ♀
;
Kane Co.
,
1 mi.
N of Little White Rock Canyon
;
37.14° N
,
111.8354° W
;
9 Aug. 2002
;
S. Messinger
leg.;
ex
Tamarix
sp.;
PCYU
•
1 ♀
;
Kane Co.
,
Tibbet Canyon
;
37.1606° N
,
111.5392° W
;
ex
Salsola paulsenii
;
PCYU
•
1 ♀
;
Tooele Co.
,
4.17 mi.
SE of Wig Mt.
;
40.276° N
,
113.0068° W
;
26 Sep. 2005
;
T. Griswold
and
K. Huntzinger
leg.;
PCYU
•
1 ♀
;
Tooele Co.
,
4.6 mi.
WSW of Little Granite Mtn.
;
40.1755° N
,
112.9218° W
;
26 Sep. 2005
;
T. Griswold
&
K. Huntzinger
leg.;
PCYU
. –
Wyoming
•
1 ♀
;
Big Horn Co.
,
Lovell Local Training Area
,
Lovell
; [
44.77° N
,
108.3° W
];
1158 m
a.s.l.
;
11 Jul. 2000
;
B.C. Kondratieff
,
P.M. Pineda
and
H. Al-Dhafer
leg.;
CSUC
•
1 ♂
;
Carbon Co.
,
8 mi.
N of Baggs
; [
41.15° N
,
107.66° W
];
16 Aug. 1963
;
N. and B. Marston
leg.;
AMNH
.
Redescription
Female
See
Gibbs (2010)
for a complete redescription of the female (but note that the metasoma colour can vary from black to orange).
Male
COLOURATION. Head and mesosoma blue to blue-green; clypeus apical colour reddish brown; labrum reddish brown to orange; mandible orange with black basal spot and red tip; flagellum reddish brown dorsally, yellow-orange ventrally; pronotal lobe reddish brown; metasoma black or reddish brown with rims of terga and sterna narrowly translucent reddish brown and downcurved lateral areas of terga becoming narrowly transparent; legs reddish brown with femur-tibia joints, base and apex of tibiae, and tarsi yellow; tegula pale amber; wing membrane hyaline, veins with subcosta and costa apically brown, otherwise pale amber.
PUBESCENCE. Body hair colour white. Tomentum dense on head except postgena and between ocelli, mesosoma except pronotum anterior face, scutum and scutellum medially, and propodeum, T1–3 basally and laterally, and T4–6 throughout; sparse on propodeum posterolateral slope. Scutum hair densely plumose. Sterna hair short (1–1.5 OD), densely plumose, dense and erect. Wing hairs light, short and dense.
SURFACE SCULPTURE. Clypeus punctures moderately dense (i=1–2 pd), sculpture shiny; supraclypeal area punctures dense (i ≤ 1 pd), sculpture shiny; paraocular area punctures dense (i ≤ 1 pd), sculpture shiny; frons punctures dense (i <1 pd), sculpture shiny; vertex punctures dense laterally (i <1 pd), moderately sparse medially (i =1–2 pd), sculpture shiny; gena punctures moderately dense (i=1–2 pd), sculpture shiny; postgena sculpture shiny, becoming tessellate laterad of hypostomal carina; tegula punctures absent; scutum punctures sparse (i= 1–4 pd), becoming dense marginally (i ≤ 1 pd), sculpture shiny; scutellum punctures sparse (i =1–3 pd), sculpture shiny; metanotum sculpture shiny and finely, sparsely punctate (i= 1–3 pd); metapostnotum rugae strong, subparallel, not reaching margin, sculpture weakly imbricate; preëpisternum sculpture areolate; hypoepimeron punctures crowded (i=0 pd), sculpture shiny; mesepisternum punctures dense (i <1 pd), sculpture shiny; metepisternum sculpture lineate dorsally, areolate ventrally; propodeum lateral face punctures dense (i <1 pd), obscure, sculpture weakly imbricate; propodeum posterior face sculpture shiny and sparsely punctate (i =1–4 pd); T1 anterior face sculpture shiny; T1 dorsal surface punctures sparse (i =1–3 pd), sculpture shiny; T2 disc punctures moderately dense (i= 1–2 pd), becoming sparse apicomedially (i =1–3 pd), disc sculpture shiny, rim punctures minute, very sparse (i=3–6 pd), rim sculpture shiny.
Fig. 67.
Lasioglossum
(
D.
)
pallidellum
(
Ellis, 1914
)
, red morph, ♀.
A
. Dorsal habitus.
B
. Lateral habitus.
C
. Face.
D
. Propodeum.
E
. Metasoma. Scale bars: 1 mm.
Fig. 68.
Lasioglossum
(
D.
)
pallidellum
(
Ellis, 1914
)
, dark morph, ♂.
A
. Dorsal habitus.
B
. Lateral habitus.
C
. Face.
D
. Propodeum.
E
. Metasoma. Scale bars: 1 mm.
STRUCTURE. Face length/width ratio 0.82 (± 0.02 SD). F1:pedicel length ratio 1.08 (± 0.21 SD); F2:F1 length ratio 1.75 (± 0.27 SD); F2 length/width ratio 1.26 (± 0.09 SD); F9 length/width ratio 1.11 (± 0.12 SD). Forewing with 3 submarginal cells; pronotal angle obtuse; tegula shape normal. Intertegular distance 0.9 (± 0.03 SD) mm. Scutum length/width ratio 0.77 (± 0.05 SD); scutum/scutellum length ratio 2.54 (± 0.16 SD); scutellum/metanotum length ratio 1.52 (± 0.11 SD); metanotum/metapostnotum length ratio 0.76 (± 0.08 SD). Propodeum lateral carinae not reaching dorsal margin; oblique carina absent. (n =5)
GENITALIA. As in
Fig. 90K
. Gonocoxite very broad, cashew-shaped. Gonostylus very large, boot-shaped, with a few long hairs. Retrorse lobe broad, ovoid, with dense short hairs concentrated at apex.
Range
Alberta
south to
Nuevo Leon
and west to
California
(
Fig. 69
).
Floral records
AMARANTHACEAE Juss.
Salsola
L.
S
.
paulsenii
Litv.
•
ASTERACEAE Giseke
:
Aplopappus
•
Ericameria
:
E
.
nauseosa
(Pall. ex Pursh) G.L. Nesom & Baird
:
E
.
n
.
var.
nauseosa
(Pall. ex Pursh) G.L. Nesom & Baird
•
Gutierrezia
:
G
.
microcephala
(DC.) A.Gray
•
Isocoma
:
I
.
acradenia
(Greene) Greene
•
CLEOMACEAE Bercht. & J. Presl
:
Cleomella
DC.
C
.
obtusifolia
Torr. & Frém.
•
Oxystylis
Torr. & Frém.
O
.
lutea
Torr. & Frém.
•
Wislizenia
Engelm.
W
.
refracta
Engelm.
•
FABACEAE Juss.
Acacia
:
A
.
greggii
A.Gray
•
Astragalus
:
A
.
lentiginosus
Hook.
•
Melilotus
•
Prosopis
:
P
.
glandulosa
Fig. 69.
Georeferenced collection records of
Lasioglossum
(
D.
)
pallidellum
(
Ellis, 1914
)
(black squares) and predicted distribution by maximum entropy ecological niche modeling in Maxent (colour shading). Warmer colours indicate higher cloglog probability of occurrence.
Torr. •
POLYGONACEAE Juss.
Eriogonum
Michx.
E
.
trichopes
Torr.
•
ROSACEAE Juss.
Prunus
L. •
SALICACEAE Mirb.
Salix
L.
S
.
exigua
Nutt.
•
TAMARICACEAE Link
:
Tamarix
L.
T
.
aralensis
Bunge.
DNA barcodes
Six sequences available (BOLD process IDs: DLII676-07, DLII1090-07, DIAL1137-07, DLII1229-08, DLII1234-08, DLII1236-08). However, all are incomplete (<400 bp) and do not have an assigned BIN.
Lasioglossum pallidellum
differs from all other western red-tailed
L
. (
Dialictus
) by 2 fixed substitutions: 426(A) and 543(T) (Supplementary file 4).
Remarks
Lasioglossum pallidellum
was redescribed by
Gibbs (2010)
; however, neither the male nor the red-tailed
form was
known to him at that time. The male is described here for the first time. In addition, the known range of this species is expanded to
Nuevo Leon
and
California
.
Almost all specimens from the Mojave Desert are of the red-tailed form, and most of the rest are dark. The red-tailed form is especially abundant in and around Death Valley National Park. It is possible that there is a geographic barrier between the Mojave Desert and the rest of
L
.
pallidellum
’s range, and the red and dark forms are distinct species. However, there are no other obvious morphological features distinguishing the two forms, and the geographic separation is not perfect. There are several red-tailed specimens and intermediate forms from eastern
Utah
,
Coahuila
, and
Nuevo Leon
, and a single dark female and two males from the Death Valley area. Along with the lack of high-quality DNA barcodes for both forms, the two-species hypothesis is difficult to test. Until more evidence to the contrary is found, it seems best to consider these a single species.