Megachile (Austrosarus) frankieana, Raw, Anthony, 2006

Raw, Anthony, 2006, A new subgenus and three new species of leafcutter bees, Megachile (Austrosarus) (Hymenoptera, Megachilidae) from central Brazil, Zootaxa 1228, pp. 25-34 : 27-30

Megachile (Austrosarus) frankieana new species

HOLOTYPE: Female. Length of fore wing 8 mm. Body largely black. Mandible, labrum, antenna, legs, first metasomal tergite, sternites, veins of hind wing and apical half of fore wing partly or wholly dark brown. Tegula and veins of basal half of fore wing orange brown. Much of pubescence silvery. The following dark brown: hairs of frons, clypeus, pronotal lobe, upper parts of mesepisternum and propodeum, first and second metasomal tergites, erect bristles of fifth and sixth tergites and some scopal hairs of fifth and sixth sternites. Golden, appressed hairs are apical fringes of third, and cover apical halves of fourth and fifth tergites and a somewhat thinner covering of sixth.

Length of hairs of head and mesoscutum little more than twice an ocellar diameter. Apical margin of clypeus slightly concave, impunctate, slightly thickened, edge uneven ( Figure 1 ). Mandible with four or five teeth ( Figure 2 ). Small, incomplete cutting edge in second interspace next to third tooth ( Figure 3 ). Appressed tomentum of fourth, fifth and sixth tergites obscuring much of surface. Apical fascia present on>18% of each side of total width of fourth sternite.

ALLOTYPE: Male. Coloration, pubescence and puncturation largely like those of female. Appressed hairs of face pale golden with patch of black, suberect hairs across upper part of clypeus. Fore femur and tibia dark brown on outer side and mid to pale brown on inner side. Fore tarsi mid brown, but second to fourth ochre on outer side. Second tarsal segment of fore leg bearing one black spot on inner side.

Apical margin of clypeus with very small median emargination bearing a small central knob. Inner mandibular tooth at angle of 45 o. Fore coxa armed with a conspicuous moderately robust spine and patch of appressed, orange bristles near the base ( Figure 4 ); appressed, orange bristles occupying less than a quarter of ventral surface of fore coxa. Pre­apical carina of sixth metasomal tergite clearly visible from above, with deep, rounded emargination ( Figure 5 ). Fifth sternite with distinct, curved gradulus, the postgradular setae numerous but not dense ( Figure 6 ). Sixth sternite with apical lobes narrowly extended, postgradular area with simple setae some of which extend beyond apical edge of sternite, postgradular lobes low, pregradular hairs present ( Figure 7 ). Eighth sternite without fringe, its basal lobe acute and apical lobe squarish, surface of latter bearing setae ( Figure 8 ). Gonoforceps compressed apically, its inner surface hirsute apically ( Figure 9 ).

The general coloration of this species resembles that of several members of Megachile of the subgenera Ptilosarus and Ptilosaroides.

Material examined

38 females and 19 males.

Holotype female: Fazenda Agua Limpa (field station of the University of Brasília), Federal District (15o 55’ S; 47o 57’ W), 25.9.1979, A. Raw leg.

Allotype male: Reserva Roncador, Federal District (15o 52’ S; 48o 52’ W), 4.10.1996, R. I. P. de Freitas & G. S. de Freitas leg.

Paratypes: A. Raw leg: Fazenda Água Limpa, Federal District (10 females and 2 males); Cabeça de Veado, Federal District (15o 53’ S; 47o 52’ W) (1 female and 1 male); University of Brasília campus (15o 42’ S; 47o 54’ W) (5 females and 1 male); Chapada de Contagem, Federal District (15o 32’ S; 47o 57’ W) (1 male); North Peninsula, Brasília (15o 44’ S; 47o 54’ W) (1 male); Brasilia­Anápolis highway (15o 58’S 48o 11’W) (1 female); Nova Xavantina, Mato Grosso (14o 42’ S; 52o 25’ W) (1 female); Rio Manso, Mato Grosso (14o 57’ S; 55o 44’ W) (2 females). B. F. S. Dias leg: Reserva Roncador, Federal District (8 females and 3 males). R. I. P. de Freitas & G.S. de Freitas leg: Cabeça de Veado, Federal District (2 females); Reserva Roncador, Federal District (4 females and 6 males); Brasília National Park (15 o 40’ S; 48o 00’ W) (1 male). C. Elias leg: Passos, Minas Gerais (1 female and 1 male); Cáceres, Mato Grosso (2 females). A. A. A. Barbosa leg. Uberlândia, Minas Gerais (1 male).

Distribution

The species is widespread in the Federal District and also occurs in eastern and southern Mato Grosso State and in the States of Goiás and Minas Gerais. The species was collected in all months except February, but was most common from September to November (37% of all specimens collected in October).

Flowers

The bees visited Aspilia foliacea Baker , Eupatorium sp., Vernonia fruticulosa Burm. and Viguiera grandiflora Gardner (Compositae) , Cuphea spermacoce St. Hill (Lythraceae) , Eriosema floribundum Benth. , Eriope complicata Mart. ex Benth. , E. crassipes Benth. and Marsypianthes montana Benth. (Labiatae) , Galactia grewiifolia (Benth.) Taub. (Leguminosae) , Oxalis sp ( Oxalidaceae ), Erythroxylum sp ( Erythroxylaceae ), Stachytarphaeta cayennensis (Rich.) Vahl. (Verbenaceae) . Both sexes were also collected in Malaise traps.

Type repositories

The holotype female and allotype male are deposited in the collection of the Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras of the Universidade de São Paulo in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil. Paratypes are in the collections of the Instituto Brasileira de Geografia e Estatística in Brasília, Departamento de Zoologia of the Universidade de Brasília, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte, Universidade de Paraná in Curitiba, Museu de Zoologia de São Paulo, Natural History Museum in London, University Museum in Oxford, the University of Kansas, Smithsonian Institution, University of California at Berkeley and the collection of the author.

The species is dedicated to Dr. Gordon Frankie, bee ecologist of the University of California at Berkeley.

Colour variation

The facial hairs of 37 females were categorised by the colour of the facial hairs, the length of the fore wing and the bristles on the fifth metasomal tergite. (One female was dismembered.) They fell into four categories ( Table 1 ) and representatives of all four were found in and around Brasilia. All ten females with mostly black facial hairs also bore black bristles on the fifth metasomal tergite and all were from the Federal District. The remaining 27 bore mostly white facial hairs and bore golden, brown and black bristles on the fifth metasomal tergite. The specimens from Cáceres and Passos bore golden bristles on the fifth tergite and many white facial hairs as did one from Rio Manso (all localities in Mato Grosso State). The length of the fore wing did not differ significantly between any of the categories.

* In specimens with more white hairs, the white pubescence covers most of the frons below the ocelli and there is a patch on each side of the clypeus.

In specimens with few white hairs the white pubescence is largely confined to the lower corners of the frons (between the clypeus and orbit).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 9, Megachile frankieana. 1, Apical margin of the clypeus of the female. 2, Mandible of the female. 3, Mandible of the female viewed from below to show the cutting edge in the second interspace. 4, Fore coxa of the female showing the ventral process and patch of bristles. 5. Sixth metasomal tergite of the male. 6, Fifth metasomal sternite of the male, 7, Sixth metasomal sternite of the male. 8, Eighth metasomal sternite of the male. 9, Genital capsule of the male.

Tables

TABLE 1. Variation in the coloration of 37 females of Megachile frankieana.

		Colour of bristles of fifth metasomal tergite
		golden brown black
Colour of facial hairs *	more white hairs	10 6 11
	few white hairs	0 0 10