Brachymelecta mucida (Cresson)

Engel, Michael S. & Michener, Charles D., 2012, The melectine bee genera Brachymelecta and Sinomelecta (Hymenoptera, Apidae), ZooKeys 244, pp. 1-19 : 3-7

Brachymelecta mucida (Cresson) Figs 1-10

Melecta? mucida Cresson, 1879a: 205 [♂]. Cresson 1887: 298 [checklist]; Fox 1893: 143 [♂, key]; Cresson 1916: 125 [type catalog, note on broken antennae].

[Melecta]? mucida Cresson; Cresson 1879b: 218 [checklist].

Melecta mucida Cresson; Dalla Torre 1896: 317 [checklist].

Brachymelecta mucida (Cresson); Linsley 1939: 459 [♂].

Brachymelecta mucida (Cresson); Hurd 1953: 37 [♂, note].

Holotype.

♂ (Fig. 1), labeled "Nev. [presumed abbreviation for Nevada, USA]" // "Melecta? mucida, 2 sub cells, Cr" // "Holotype 2294 [red label]" (Fig. 1); deposited in the Department of Entomology, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

Diagnosis.

As for the genus (vide supra).

Description.

Male (holotype): Body length 9 mm, forewing length 8 mm. Head width 2.7 mm; head length (lower margin of clypeus to vertex in facial view) 2.1 mm. Intertegular distance 2.0 mm; distance between outer margins of tegulae 3.0 mm.

Clypeus strongly protuberant, in lateral view extending anteriorly about compound eye width in front of lower compound eye margin; lower margin straight, middle third slightly depressed. Mandible with distal half almost parallel sided, less than half as wide as base; apex bidentate, upper tooth slightly smaller and shorter than lower tooth; basal tooth not evident but mandibles closed and not fully exposed. Malar space very short, base of mandible closely approaching compound eye. Labrum not fully exposed but apparently about as long as broad. Inner orbits converging below (Fig. 3); vertex rather strongly and uniformly convex (Fig. 3). Gena broadest at upper third, not as broad as compound eye; preoccipital ridge sharply angulate; median ocellus with transverse diameter (= ocellar diameter) greater than that of lateral ocellus, ocellocular distance approximately equal to interocellar distance, ocelloccipital distance less than twice ocellar diameter, distance between lateral and median ocelli equal to diameter of lateral ocellus. Antenna with scape scarcely over twice as long as maximum width which is scarcely greater than width of flagellum (based on first four flagellomeres only); pedicel exposed as narrow ring about four times as broad as long; F1 over 1.5 times as long as F2; F2, 3, and 4 subequal, each broader than long, F2 and F3 together longer than F1 (Fig. 3) (antennae broken so that F5 and beyond cannot be described; breakage occurred long ago as indicated by Cresson 1916: 125). Mesoscutellum with subhorizontal dorsal surface about twice as long as vertical surface; dorsal and posterior surfaces divided by longitudinal depression resulting in bilobed form, posterior dorsal part of each lobe forming narrowly rounded, obtuse angle projecting posteriorly; angle between posterior and dorsal surfaces approximately orthogonal but not formed by carina; posterior surface not overhanging metanotum; lower margin of mesoscutellum above metanotum marked by strong transverse carina. Metatibia with outer surface coarsely nodulose; outer apical margins of tibiae protuberant but without conspicuous spines; mesotibial spur and outer metatibial spur about as long as tibial diameter; inner metatibial spur longer than tibial diameter; arolia well developed; pretarsal claws cleft, outer ramus slender, sharply pointed, inner ramus flattened, expanded, much shorter than outer ramus, apex approximately right angular [much as in Xeromelecta (Melectomorpha) californica (Cresson): vide Michener 2007: fig 117d]. Forewing with surface beyond venation strongly papillate (Fig. 4); basal vein strongly basad cu-a; submarginal cells two because of loss of 1rs-m; other aspects of wing venation shown in figures 4 and 5. Metasomal T1 with midlength of horizontal surface subequal to that of vertical (anterior) surface and considerably shorter than midlength of exposed part of T2; posterior margins of sterna straight, transverse, to gently concave on more posterior sterna to S5; S1with midbasal tubercle, not carinate; S7, S8, and genitalia illustrated in Figures 6-10.

Because of rather dense vestiture, surface in some areas seen only locally; following might change considerably if setae removed from certain areas: Clypeus coarsely and closely punctate medially, anterior margin with even larger and irregular punctures; most of remainder of head with dense coarse punctures with irregular smooth shiny areas between some punctures; lower half of frons, adjacent parts of paraocular area, and supraclypeal area dull with dense small punctures. Mesosoma largely coarsely punctate with punctures similar to those of center of clypeus but with more shiny ground between punctures which often separated by one-half puncture width although close in other areas; median part of mesoscutellum and especially mesoscutellar lobes with punctures even larger, leaving only a network of ridges; metanotum and propodeal triangle with punctures smaller, as close as they can be, on lateral part of triangle forming series of transverse (vertical) irregular striae. Metasomal punctures minute, mostly separated by several pun cture diameters, surface between punctures largely lineolate, especially on sterna where large areas lack punctures almost completely; posterior margins of terga smooth.

Setae of head and mesosoma rather abundant, mostly two to three ocellar diameters in length, grayish white (cinereous) with brownish tints on lower parts of gena, blackish on axilla, largely white on sides of mesosoma and center of face; antennal scape and coxae with similar grayish white setae, mostly one ocellar diameter in length. Antennal pedicel with dense very short setae; flagellum asetose; legs beyond coxae largely with short, yellowish white setae, dense and yellow on under sides of tarsi; profemur with strong fringe of white setae two or more ocellar diameters in length on posterior surface; similar fringe of much shorter and less conspicuous white setae on mesofemur; outer surface of mesotibia except near base densely covered with white setae that obscure surface; protibia with similar white setae, less dense, and absent on both base and apex. Metasomal T1 to T4 densely covered with pale brown, appressed, plumose setae, except posterior margins smooth and bare, these margins narrow on T1 to T3, broader especially medially on T4; T5 and T6 with exposed parts like margins of more anterior terga but T6 with some pale brown plumose setae basally; T1 to T4 with a few long simple setae laterally, very few on T1, number increasing and more dorsal from T2 to T4; S1 to S3 with few long pale setae, large median areas on S2 and S3 asetose; S4 and S5 with fringes of long pale brown setae.

Integumental coloration black, legs and middle third of mandible dark reddish brown except tibial spurs black; metasomal sterna and posterior margins of terga dark brown; under side of antenna brownish black; tegula translucent brownish black. Wings transparent, shaded with dusky brown beyond venation of forewing, darkest near costal margin distal to marginal cell (Fig. 1), weakly darkened within distal cells; veins dusky brown, pterostigma light brown.

Female: Unknown.

Comments.

Cresson (1879a) records the specimen as from "Nevada, (Morrison)" (p. 205) even though the preserved label provides only “Nev.” (Fig. 1), presumably an abbreviation for Nevada. The specific epithet also appears in a checklist of North American Apidae as, "? mucida Cress. ibid. 205, ♂. Nevada." ( Cresson 1879b). As noted above, Cresson described various Hymenoptera collected by H.K. Morrison in Colorado, Georgia, Nevada, and elsewhere. Many of these are well known North American species. According to Mann (1885) Morrison is known to have collected in Nevada in 1878 and sold his collections back east.