Scrapter glarea Davies, 2005

Davies, G. B. P., Eardley, C. D. & Brothers, D. J., 2005, Eight new species of Scrapter (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Colletidae), with descriptions of S. albifumus and S. amplispinatus females and a major range extension of the genus, African Invertebrates 46, pp. 141-141 : 166-168

Scrapter glarea Davies , sp. n.

Figs 27–30

Etymology: L. glarea (gravel). A noun in apposition, in reference to the type locality, the Knersvlakte, an area characterised by its quartz gravel fields.

Holotype ơ: SOUTH AFRICA: Western Cape: 30 km N Vanrhynsdorp (31°22'23"S: 18°42'37"E), Knersvlakte , 146 m, 5.ix.2003, K.Timmermann ( SANC) . Paratype:1ơ from type locality collected on 29.ix.2003 ( MKPC) .

Description:

Male.

Measurements (n = 2): head length 1.3 mm, head width 1.5 mm, lower interocular distance 0.8 mm, upper interocular distance 1.1 mm, interantennal distance 0.4 mm, antennocular distance 0.2 mm, length of clypeus 0.5 mm, length of eye 1 mm, width of eye (lateral view) 0.4 mm, width of gena (lateral view) 0.3 mm, length of facial fovea 0.2 mm, maximum width of facial fovea 0.02 mm, mesoscutum length 0.9 mm, mesosoma length 1.7 mm, forewing length 4.1 mm, length of pterostigma 0.7 mm, maximum width of pterostigma 0.2 mm, length of marginal cell beyond pterostigma 0.9 mm, length of marginal cell 1.1 mm, length of free-part of marginal cell 0.7 mm.

Vestiture: Clypeus, lower paraocular area and supraclypeal area with long, thick, weakly plumose, decumbent white hairs (integument obscured). Upper paraocular area, frons and vertex with sparse, erect, whitish hairs. Scape with sparse, whitish hairs. Gena with sparse, whitish, weakly plumose hairs. Mesoscutum covered in sparse, erect, rather short, whitish, plumose vestiture. Scutellum and metanotum similar to mesoscutum but hairs light orange-brown. Sides of mesosoma with long, white, plumose hairs. T2–T4 (but more T2–T3) with dense, short, decumbent, white pubescence on anterior part of tergal discs, T5 sparse, whitish, short hairs, T1 largely hairless. Sterna largely hairless. Integumental colour: Mainly black.Antenna ventrally yellow. Protibia yellow (but with dark brown patch posteriorly), extreme apical end of profemur also yellow. Apical end of mesofemur, -tibia (except for posterior brown patch) and -tarsus yellow. Hindleg resembles middle leg.

Head: Clypeus smooth with dense punctation (interspace 0.5 × puncture diameter), no clypeal sulcus. Supraclypeal area raised, anterior face of supraclypeal area largely impunctate (interspace>3 × puncture diameter) and smooth. Frontal line weakly carinate. Frons and upper paraocular area carinulate. Facial fovea sulcoid and inconspicuous. Ocellar triangle raised in anterior profile. Gena slightly narrower than eye (0.8:1), fairly densely punctate and finely reticulate. Inner eye orbits diverging dorsally, proportion of lower to upper interocular distance 0.7:1. F1 not elongate.Antenna quite long, reaching metanotum.

Mesosoma: Mesoscutum with fine, reticulate sculpture and sparse punctation (interspace>2 × puncture diameter), median line weakly impressed, notaulus very weak. Scutellum and metanotum sculpture similar to mesoscutum but punctation denser. Mes- and metepisterna with rough, reticulate sculpture and fairly dense punctation, episternal groove straight, pitted throughout. Propodeum angulate with roughened reticulation and fairly dense punctation, propodeal triangle with uniform, reticulate sculpture and weak anterior carinae on basal area.

Metasoma: T1–T5 discs with finely reticulate sculpture. T2–T4 with dense micropunctation on anterior part of discs, remainder of discs impunctate. T5 with more evenly spaced macropunctation. T2 fovea elongate ovoid.

Terminalia: Gonobase large, gonoforceps margins smooth and largely parallel, rounded posteriorly, hirsute, ventrally with transparent membrane, penis valves narrow, ending in acute point ( Fig. 27 ). S6 large in relation to S7 and S8, weakly concave posteriorly with hairy posterior margin to lobes, strongly concave anteriorly ( Fig. 28 ). S7 concave posteriorly, hirsute posterolaterally ( Fig. 29 ). S8 posterior disc with hind margin truncate, posteriorly fairly hairy, anteriorly sub-truncate ( Fig. 30 ).

Legs: Metabasitibial plate entire in holotype, but only posterior carina visible in paratype. Claws deeply cleft.

Female. Unknown.

Diagnosis: S. glarea is an elongate, small bee characterised by its lack of a clypeal sulcus, inconspicuous, sulcoid facial fovea, raised ocellar triangle, starkly yellow tibiae and tarsi and leathery mesoscutum with reduced punctation. The S7 recalls S. niger , but S. glarea is smaller, and differs in the features mentioned above, especially in having reduced mesoscutal punctation, and also in having a sub-truncate hind margin to S8.

Distribution: Only known from the Knersvlakte, near Vanrhynsdorp, Western Cape (Succulent Karoo biome). See comments under S. acanthophorus regarding this region.

Biology: Type series collected in September. No pollen/nectar source data.

Figures

Figs 27–30. Scrapter glarea sp. n., terminalia: (27) genitalia (dorsal and ventral views), (28–30) S6–S8. Scale bar = 0.4 mm.