Megachile (Aethomegachile) laticeps Smith, 1853

Zakardjian, Marie, Jourdan, Herve, Cochenille, Thomas, Mahe, Prisca & Geslin, Benoit, 2023, Checklist of the bees (Hymenoptera, Apoidea) of New Caledonia, Biodiversity Data Journal 11, pp. 105291-105291 : 105291

Megachile (Aethomegachile) laticeps Smith, 1853

Megachile gadara Cameron, 1903;

Megachile mcgregori Cockerell, 1918;

Megachile metallescens Cockerell, 1918;

Megachile otriades Cameron, 1902;

Megachile penangensis Cockerell, 1918;

Megachile robbii Ashmead, 1904;

Megachile semperi Friese, 1905;

Megachile subignita Cockerell, 1918;

Megachile varidens Cameron, 1905;

Megachile caecina Cameron, 1903;

Megachile cinyras Cameron, 1902

Feeds on

Duranta repens ( Pauly and Munzinger 2003); Convolvulaceae : Ipomoea pes-caprae (native); Myrtaceae : Sannantha pinifolia (native); Verbenaceae : Duranta erecta (alien) ( Donovan et al. 2013); Antigonon leptopus , Cosmos sp., Cuphea hyssopifolia , Duranta erecta , Ossinum basilicum , Schinus terebinthifolius , Tridax sp. (new records).

Native status

Likely alien. Pauly & Munzinger (2003) hypothesised that this species could be alien because it was captured in Noumea, while visiting an alien plant species.

Distribution

Native range: India to Malaysia, Nepal, Vietnam.

Alien rage: Singapore, Maldives, South Africa (remains to be confirmed), widely distributed in the Pacific Region (Vanuatu, Fiji, French Polynesia).

Historical data in New Caledonia: Nouméa, Jul 1957, one female. Dec 1979-Sep 2008, one male and one female ( Donovan et al. 2013). Nouméa, 5 Feb 1999 one male and one female ( Pauly and Munzinger 2003). Nouméa: Parc Zoologique et Forestier, 27 Feb 2019, one individual; 23 Mar 2019, one female; 04 Apr 2022, one individual; 22 Apr 2022, one individual; Centre culturel Tjibaou, 23 Mar 2019, two females; Rivière Salée, 14 Mar 2022, one individual; 16 Mar 2022, one individual; Petite Normandie, 29 Mar 2022, two individuals; 14 Apr 2022, one individual; Magenta Tours, 31 Mar 2022, four individuals; 12 Apr 2022, one individual; Tuband, 19 Apr 2022, one individual. Païta - La Tontouta: La Tontouta, 5 Apr 2019, one female. Mont Dore: La Conception, 23 Mar 2022, one individual; Rue André Burck, 1 Apr 2022, one individual; Vallon Dore, 20 Apr 2022, one individual ( Zakardjian et al. 2023b).