Thygater anae Urban 1999

Freitas, Felipe V. & Silveira, Fernando A., 2017, Synopsis of the bee genus Thygater Holmberg 1884 (Hymenoptera, Apidae) in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, with the description of a new species and a key to all Brazilian species, Zootaxa 4238 (1), pp. 1-29 : 5-6

Thygater anae Urban 1999

( Figs. 1 .A; 3.B; 4)

Thygater (Thygater) anae Urban 1999 ; Urban, Moure & Melo 2012.

Diagnosis. T. anae is sympatric and similar to T. analis and T. palliventris . Females of all these species have the apical stripe of disc and apical margin of terga translucent-amber and in all of them males may have entirely-black integument with head and mesossomal pilosity predominantly whitish. The females of T. anae can be distinguished from females of T. analis for the metasomal pilosity (completely yellowish in T. anae — Fig. 4 .A, B, C, and bright yellow on marginal zones of T2–T4 of T. analis — Fig. 5 .C) and for the clypeal punctation (sparse,> 1 dp, in T. anae — Fig. 4 .A; dense, <1 dp, in T. analis — Fig. 5 .A). In female T. palliventris the clypeus has a shiny midlongitudinal band and, in most specimens, a yellow, apical transverse stripe ( Fig. 12 .A), while in T. anae the clypeus is homogeneously punctate and has no yellow stripe ( Fig. 4 .A). Male T. anae are similar to males of the sympatric species T. analis and T. palliventris , but can be distinguished from them by the presence of a complete marginal fringe in S4 that is absent in the others two ( Fig. 1 ).

Description ♀ (holotype): Integument black, except brown on labrum, dark brown on legs, yellow on metasoma, except translucent-amber on disc of T1–T4 and marginal zones on S2–S4; on clypeus entirely reticulate, sparsely punctate; on mesosoma weakly reticulate on mesoscutum, strongly so on mesepisternum, finely and densely punctate (> 1 dp); on metasoma sparsely and very finely punctate (> 1 dp); translucent-amber areas on apex of marginal zones of S2–S4 wide. Pilosity on head predominantly yellow with some blackish hairs on paraocular areas and frons; on mesosoma entirely yellow; on legs yellow, brownish in some areas; on metasoma mostly yellow, darker on T5–T6 and with long, thicker, black setae on T3–T5; on S2–S5 forming submarginal fringe, denser on S5. Structure —malar area almost ½ as long as basal mandibular width; clypeus with a weak midlongitudinal keel not forming a carina, its basal depression less than 1/5 as long as clypeus; S6 with weak longitudinal elevation.

♂: Integument entirely black, except whitish-yellow on labrum, brown on legs, translucent-amber on marginal zones of terga and of S2–S5; on clypeus entirely reticulate and punctate; on terga strongly dull-reticulate; translucent-amber areas on apex of marginal zones of terga narrow, shorter than F1; translucent-amber areas on apex of marginal zones of S2–S5 wider than F1, wider on S4; on S2–S5 finally reticulate with sparse punctation (>2dp); on S6 smooth. Pilosity white on gena and most of frons; on paraocular area white with brown hairs intermingled (most abundant on vertex); on mesosoma dark-brown dorsally, with white transverse stripe along posterior margin of mesoscutum, white ventrally; on metasoma, simple and sparse on terga; dark-brown with white tufts laterally on S3–S5, S4 with complete marginal fringe; on S6 simple and sparse, restricted to basal and midlongitudinal areas and to apical margin. Structure —malar area ¾ as long as basal mandibular width; clypeus with weak mid-longitudinal keel, not forming carina; basal depression of clypeus less than 1/5 as long as clypeus; apex of T7 forming two flat triangular lobes; apical margin of S5 without projections; S6 without carinae.

Holotype (female): “DPT o ZOOL; UF– PARANÁ ” “ SANTA TEREZA – ES; BRASIL 8/11/1967; C. T. & C. Elias lg” “ Thygater ; anae ; Urban 1999 ” “ Holótipo ” [ DZUP]—examined.

Variation and taxonomic notes: As in T. analis and T. palliventris , pilosity color in T. anae is variable, but in this species, it is always predominantly yellow.

Habitat: The species seems to be endemic of the Atlantic Forest domain. A single specimen examined from Paraíba state, in the Caatinga semiarid domain, was collected at Pico do Jabre (municipality of Maturéia), at relatively high elevations (the peak, itself reaches 1,197 m). This is one of the altitudinal enclaves of Atlantic Forest inside the Caatinga, which are locally called “brejos de altitude”. Other endemic taxa from the Atlantic Forest have been recorded at this site and their presence has been explained as due to the pleistocenic expansion of the forest to that area, which represents a present environmental refuge for them ( Tabarelli & Santos 2004).

Additional material examined (seven specimens, 0 5 ♀♀ and 0 2 ♂♂): BRAZIL — ESPIRITO SANTO: Santa Tereza — 04/12/1966, C.T & C. Elias 1♀ (Paratype); 08/11/1967, C.T & C. Elias, 3♀♀ (Paratype); 30/11/1967, C.T & C. Elias 1♀ (Paratype); 08/11/1967, C.T & C. Elias 18♂♂ (Paratype); 15/11/1967, C.T & C. Elias, 6♂♂ (Paratype) [DZUP]. MINAS GERAIS: Alto Caparaó —PARNA Caparaó— 04/04/2007, M.F. Goulart 1♀[UFMG]. Belo Horizonte — Parque Estadual da Serra do Rola Moça— 15/10/1998, G. Sousa 1♀ [ UFMG]. This is the first record of the species in the state of Minas Gerais . PARAÍBA: Maturéia — Pico do Jabre, 06/03/1998, C. Schlindwein 1♀ [ UFMG] . RIO DE JANEIRO: Duas Barras — Fazenda Reunidas— 07/12/2011, T.M. Mesquita 1♀ [ UFMG] . Trajano de Morais — 21/03/2012, T.M.S. Mesquita 1♂ [UFMG].

Distribution in Minas Gerais: The species appears to be associated to forest environments in eastern Brazil, with its westernmost record in the ecotone between the Cerrado (savanna) and the inland seasonal forests of the Atlantic Forest, in Minas Gerais state, and the northernmost record in an isolated forest refuge in Paraíba state (see “Habitat”, above).

Flower records: Convolvulaceae — Merraemia sp., Maturéia—PB [UFMG].

Figures

FIGURE 1. Ventral view of metasoma of males. A — Thygater anae, B — T. analis (the arrows indicate the alternative states of the marginal fringe of S 4, mentioned in couplet 4 of the key to males).

FIGURE 4. T. anae — ♀: A — frontal view, B — lateral view, C — dorsal view (DZUP Santa Tereza—ES, Brasil, 8 / 11 / 1967, C. T. & C. Elias lg, Paratype); ♂: D — frontal view, E — lateral view, F — dorsal view (UFMG 1200097). Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURE 5. T. analis — ♀: A — frontal view, B — lateral view, C — dorsal view (UFMG 34096); ♂: D — frontal view, E — lateral view, F — dorsal view, G — Genital capsule (the arrow indicates the long projection on the anterior margin of the spata, mentioned in couplet 7 of the key to males) (UFMG 1402951). Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURE 12. T. palliventris— ♀: A — frontal view, B — lateral view, C — dorsal view (UFMG 19324); ♂: D — frontal view, E — lateral view, F — dorsal view (UFMG 1602166). Scale bar = 1 mm.