Andrena (Truncandrena) syriensis Wood, 2021

Pisanty, Gideon, Scheuchl, Erwin, Martin, Teresa, Cardinal, Sophie & Wood, Thomas James, 2022, Twenty-five new species of mining bees (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae: Andrena) from Israel and the Levant, Zootaxa 5185 (1), pp. 1-109 : 81-82

Andrena (Truncandrena) syriensis Wood, 2021

( Figs. 191–194 )

Female ( Fig. 191 ).

Body length: 9 mm.

Colour. Body uniformly dark grey ( Fig. 191 ). Flagellum dark basally, becoming orange from apex of segment 1 onwards, particularly ventrally. Legs dark; hind tibia, basitarsi and all apical tarsal segments orange. Wings hyaline, stigma orange centrally, dark orange laterally, venation orange ( Fig. 191 ). Tergal margins apically lightened orangewhitish hyaline ( Fig. 194 ).

Pubescence. Face, gena, vertex and scape with long white hairs, on gena longest equaling length of scape ( Figs. 192–193 ). Clypeus apically, mandibles and labrum with faintly golden hairs. Fovea with short brownish hairs ( Fig. 192 ). Mesonotum and scutellum with short white hairs, becoming longer on mesepisternum, not exceeding length of scape ( Figs. 191, 193 ). Propodeal corbicula weakly complete, composed of white plumose hairs; surface of propodeal corbicula almost hairless, with few simple white hairs laterally. Leg hair white to faintly golden apically, scopa white ( Fig. 191 ). Flocculus weakly complete, composed of white plumose hairs. Tergal discs with short white hairs, marginal zones 1–4 with complete white hairbands, on 2–4 thick and obscuring underlying surface. Prepygidial fimbria golden centrally, white laterally; pygidial fimbria golden ( Fig. 194 ).

Head ( Figs. 192–193 ). 1.3 times broader than long. Labral process narrowly trapezoidal, apical margin with small emargination. Clypeus weakly domed, shagreened except for small medioapical area, weakly shining. Surface densely punctured with exception of clear impunctate longitudinal line centrally, punctures otherwise separated by <0.5 puncture diameters. Paraocular area with inconspicuous punctures; frons with longitudinal striations, underlying surface weakly shagreened, very weakly shining. Flagellomere 1 exceeds 2+3, shorter than 2+3+4. Facial fovea dorsally occupying half distance between lateral ocellus and compound eye, in length slightly exceeding level of antennal insertions, not narrowed below. Fovea dorsally separated from lateral ocellus by 1.5 diameters of lateral ocellus ( Fig. 192 ). Ocelloccipital distance equals width of lateral ocellus. Genal area equals width of compound eye.

Mesosoma ( Fig. 193 ). Pronotum without elevated dorsolateral angle or lateral carina. Mesonotum and scutellum shagreened, very weakly shining, entire surface with dense but extremely shallow and inconspicuous punctures, essentially contiguous, indicated by slightly raised margins. Mesepisternum with fine granular microreticulation, with faint raised reticulation above. Anterolateral face of propodeum with only fine granular microreticulation, posterolateral part of propodeum with fine granular microreticulation and faint raised reticulation above; propodeal triangle narrow, indicated by absence of raised reticulation. Inner side of hind femur rounded, not carinate. Tarsal claws with small inner tooth. Recurrent vein 1 reaching submarginal cell 2 at its middle. Submarginal crossvein 1 meets marginal cell 7 vein widths from stigma. Nervulus interstitial ( Fig. 191 ).

Metasoma ( Fig. 194 ). Terga with fine microreticulation, weakly shining, strongest on tergum 1, becoming finer and weaker on following terga. Tergal discs with fine, irregular punctures, punctures separated by 2–3 puncture diameters. Marginal zones weakly depressed, occupying 0.2–0.3 of tergal disc, with same irregular punctures. Pygidial plate rounded triangular, slightly raised centrally, internal surface roughened irregularly.

Distribution: Syria, in desert localities (Palmyra, As-Shuknah, east of Homs).

Flight period: March–April.

Flower records: None.

Diagnosis: see Andrena petrae sp. nov.

Material examined: HOLOTYPE: SYRIA: Homs, 22 km E, As-Shuknah , 250 m, 24.iii.1988, L. Blank (♂) ( OLML) ; PARATYPE: Homs, 20 km E, 400 m, 1.iv.1988, L. Blank (1♂) ( OLML); non-type material : SYRIA: 110 km E of Palmyra , 350 m, 21–22.iv.1992, K. Warncke, (1♀, 6♂) ( OLML, TJW) .

Remarks. Material of this species was found in undetermined material in the Warncke collection. It is very similar to A. petrae sp. nov., but can be separated as outlined above. It is slightly smaller than the A. syriensis males described in Wood (2021a), but was found with correspondingly smaller males which match all A. syriensis characters. It is therefore judged to be the true female, with the size differences potentially as a result of its collecting locality deep in the Syrian desert, where a shortage of water and hence plant growth may result in bees with smaller body sizes, due to reduced quantities of pollen placed in brood cells by adult female bees.

Figures

FIGURES 188–194. Andrena (Truncandrena) petrae sp. nov. 188. male head and mesosoma, 189. male metasoma, 190. male genitalia. Andrena (Truncandrena) syriensis Wood. 191, female habitus, 192. female head, 193. female head and mesosoma, 194. female metasoma.