Mexalictus (Georgealictus) eickworti Godinez-Garcia

DUMESH, SHEILA, 2013, <p> <strong> Revision of the rare Mesoamerican bee genus <em> Mexalictus </ em> (Hymenoptera: Halictidae) with the description of </ strong> <br /> <strong> 21 new species </ strong> </ p>, Zootaxa 3708 (1), pp. 1-80 : 64-65

Mexalictus (Georgealictus) eickworti Godinez-Garcia

( Figs. 47 , 170–171 )

Mexalictus eickworti Godinez-Garcia, 1996 , J. Kans. Ent. Soc. 69(4) suppl.: 401-402. Female.

Holotype. Female. MEXICO, Hidalgo, Tenango de Doria , 1750m, Cerro El Cirio, 2019’24N 9811’52W, 5 Sept 1993, (L. Godinez) [ UNAM]. Diagnosis. This species can be distinguished from others by the following combination: distinct metallic reflections on the head and metapostnotum; metapostnotum with deep striation reaching halfway to apex.

Redescription. Female: Body length 8.25mm, forewing length 6.6mm. Head: metallic green, round, head width 1.95–2.0mm. Head: round, L:W = 0.96:1. (1) Labrum and mandible: labrum with subrectangular basal area, flattened basal elevation, narrow triangular distal process; mandible with subapical tooth. (2) Clypeus: length subequal to length of supraclypeal area, about 3/4 of length below lower ocular tangent, weakly convex in lateral view, protuberance about equal to supraclypeal area; punctures separated by 1pd basally, more sparse apically; lower margins of compound eyes at mid-level of clypeus. (3) Supraclypeal area: mostly dull except basal shiny area around antennal bases; slightly convex in lateral view; slightly narrower than long; punctation more or less even on central disc, slightly denser laterally. (4) Lower paraocular area: mostly dull becoming shiny towards paraocular lobe; punctation becoming less crowded below antennae, especially towards supraclypeal area, very finely punctate laterad of paraocular lobe towards inner margin of compound eyes. (5) Frontal area: punctures dense and crowded, separated by 0.25pd at most; frontal line carinate only between antennae, with a visible shiny line reaching median ocellus. (6) Vertexal area: shiny, with a weak transverse depression; punctures coarse, obscure and crowded medially, more separated laterally. (7) Genal and hypostomal areas: genal area as wide as compound eye in lateral view, shiny with fine obscure punctures; hypostomal area shiny and slightly granular, impunctate. (8) Antenna: scape reaching past median ocellus, pedicel slightly longer than wide, F2 shorter than F1, flagellomeres slightly increasing in length apically, F2–F5 wider than long, F6–F9 quadrate, F10 longer than wide. Mesosoma: (9) Pronotum: smooth, impunctate, more shiny laterally; pronotal lobe pubescent, bearing pale branched hairs. (10) Mesoscutum: nearly impunctate, granular along margins and median line, larger punctures sparser than smaller punctures, punctures similar laterally to those of parapsidal line. (11) Mesoscutellum: smooth medially, punctures similar to those of mesoscutum. (12) Metanotum: somewhat shiny and granular, without distinct punctures. (13) Mesopleuron: obscurely punctate, somewhat shiny, pre-episternum weakly granular anteriorly; hypoepimeral area and central episternum mostly impunctate, smooth, if granular punctures light or nearly absent. (14) Metapleuron: transversely striate basally, otherwise weakly granular and somewhat shiny with black minute pubescence, punctures separated by more than diameter. (15) Metapostnotum and propodeum: metapostnotum metallic green, basally shiny becoming granular baso-medially, with a slight depression,, striation present basally, normal and strong throughout, extending near 1/4 dorsal surface; propodeum strongly sloping posteriorly, with long white hairs laterally and posteriorly. (16) Wings: marginal cell tinted dark brown, venation dark brown on marginal and basal veins; 1 st recurrent vein meeting 2 nd transcubital vein. (17) Tegula: punctate anteriorly, with few long branched hairs distally, posteriorly transparent. (18) Foreleg: tarsi with hairs dark reddish, basitarsus parallel sided, hairs thick, erect and spine-like with a lateral patch of short golden erect hairs distally; tibia distally broadened, with dark brown-black erect hairs, longest ventrally; femur with branched dark sparse hairs ventrally, nearly bare dorsally; trochanter slender with hairs erect; coxa subtriangular, slightly depressed laterally, with branched hairs, a mixture of dark and pale hairs. (19) Middle leg: as foreleg, except as follows: basitarsus without lateral patch of short hairs distally; tibia with lateral patch of pale; femur with a lateral patch of dense short golden hairs proximally, and a patch of black long hairs near proximal margin; trochanter distally broadened; coxa somewhat hidden within ventral pleuron. (20) Hind leg: as middle leg, except as follows: basitarsus with several branched hairs, pubescence less dense than on tibia; tibia slender, densely pubescent, hairs brown-black, long and erect; femur without lateral patch of hairs, scopa well developed, with long brown branching hairs, somewhat sparse; trochanter and coxa with long, branching, black pubescence; trochanter much shorter; coxa similar to that of foreleg; inner hind tibial spur microserrate, with over 15 short, close teeth. Metasoma: (21) Terga: T1 shiny brown with a medial yellow band apical margin hyaline, minutely punctate; T2–T5 dull brown, pubescence pale, long and branched on T1, short and dark on T2–T4, long and dark on T5. (22) Sterna: S1 with white long pubescence basally, S2–S5 with hairs long and black, present on apical half of sternite, S6 with few short and erect black hairs on apex, otherwise bare.

Male: unknown.

Material examined. MEXICO, Hidalgo, Tenango de Doria , 1750m, Cerro El Cirio, 2019’24N 9811’52W, 05Sept1993, 11:15hrs, L. Godinez, LG 869 ([ UNAM] (holotype female examined).

Comments. This specimen is housed in the entomological collection in UNAM ( Mexico). Due to the limited time I had to examine the specimen in Mexico, detailed measurements and ratios are not included in the description. Measurements such as body length, wing length and head width were taken from the original description ( Godinez-Garcia, 1996). The only images which are available for this specimen are those taken with a point and shoot digital camera without magnification, as well as through a microscope eyepiece.

Figures

FIGURES 47–54. 47. Mexalictus eickworti Godinez-Garcia (1996) female head and mesosoma with metallic reflection, 48. M. diversus Dumesh, n. sp. female subantennal sutures, weakly divergent, 49. M. jovelus Dumesh, n. sp. female subantennal sutures, strongly divergent, 50. M. benyamini Dumesh, n. sp. female supraclypeal area, evenly punctate, 51. M. benyamini female forewing, 52. M. jovelus female forewing, 53. M. sheffieldi Dumesh, n. sp. female frontal line, strongly carinate, 54. M. jovelus female frontal line, slightly carinate. Scale bars = 1mm.

FIGURES 170–171. Mexalictus eickworti Godinez-Garcia (1996), 170. Female lateral habitus, 171. Female head. Scale bars = 1mm.