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Epeolus ainsliei Crawford, 1932
Life   Insecta   Hymenoptera   Apoidea   Apidae   Epeolus
Subgenus: None

Epeolus ainsliei, Axillae mesoscutellum female
Thomas Onuferko · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, Axillae mesoscutellum female

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Epeolus ainsliei, Dorsal view female holotype
Thomas Onuferko · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, Dorsal view female holotype
Epeolus ainsliei, Head frontal view female
Thomas Onuferko · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, Head frontal view female

Epeolus ainsliei, Lateral view female
Thomas Onuferko · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, Lateral view female
Epeolus ainsliei, Lateral view female
Thomas Onuferko · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, Lateral view female

Epeolus ainsliei, Lateral view male
Thomas Onuferko · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, Lateral view male
Epeolus ainsliei, female, face
Smithsonian Institution, Entomology Department · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, female, face

Epeolus ainsliei, female, side
Smithsonian Institution, Entomology Department · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, female, side
Epeolus ainsliei, female, top
Smithsonian Institution, Entomology Department · 9
Epeolus ainsliei, female, top

Epeolus ainsliei, F mm comp
Thomas Onuferko · 5
Epeolus ainsliei, F mm comp
Epeolus ainsliei, mm Xb
Thomas Onuferko · 5
Epeolus ainsliei, mm Xb

Epeolus ainsliei, mm X
Thomas Onuferko · 5
Epeolus ainsliei, mm X
Epeolus ainsliei, F mm X-comp
Thomas Onuferko · 5
Epeolus ainsliei, F mm X-comp

Epeolus ainsliei, M mm X-comp
Thomas Onuferko · 5
Epeolus ainsliei, M mm X-comp
Epeolus ainsliei, F mm X
Thomas Onuferko · 5
Epeolus ainsliei, F mm X
Overview
Extracted with permission from: Onuferko, T.M. 2017. Cleptoparasitic Bees of the Genus Epeolus Latreille (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Canada. Canadian Journal of Arthropod Identification No. 30: March 30, 2017. doi:10.3752/cjai.2017.30

http://cjai.biologicalsurvey.ca/o_30/o_30.html

Diagnosis. Both sexes of E. ainsliei can be readily identified by the following combination of features: preoccipital ridge joining hypostomal carma; axilla distinctly hooked, its lateral margin arcuate; and mesopleuron densely and evenly punctate. Additionally, the following characters in combination may help separate E. ainsllei from other Canadian species (except perhaps E. pusillus and E. scuteliaris): paramedian band present, axilla and usually also mesoscutellum ferruginous, and T2—T4 with fasciae complete.

Distribution in Canada: Southern Manitoba west to Alberta but east of the Rocky Mountains (Map 1). Possibly restricted to the Prairie Ecozone.

Extracted from: Onuferko TM (2018). A revision of the cleptoparasitic bee genus Epeolus Latreille for Nearctic species, north of Mexico (Hymenoptera, Apidae). ZooKeys 755: 1–185. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.755.23939

Diagnosis. The following morphological features in combination can be used to tell E. ainsliei apart from all other North American Epeolus: the mandible lacks a preapical angle or tooth and the preoccipital ridge joins the hypostomal carina. In some specimens of E. scutellaris, the preoccipital ridge joins or nearly joins the hypostomal carina, in which case it is separated from the hypostomal carina by less than 1 MOD at its terminal, but the species has a blunt, obtuse preapical tooth on the mandible and the axillae are relatively straight along the medial margin whereas in E. ainsliei the free portion is distinctly hooked. Epeolus ainsliei is also very similar to E. attenboroughi and E. rufulus, which it resembles in that in all three species the axilla is dilated laterally and the free portion is distinctly hooked, and the T1–T4 apical fasciae are complete; however, in both E. attenboroughi and E. rufulus the mandible has a blunt, obtuse preapical tooth, the mesoscutum lacks the distinct paramedian bands present in E. ainsliei and is instead largely obscured by pale tomentum, and the preoccipital ridge does not join the hypostomal carina.

Redescription. This species was recently redescribed (Onuferko 2017).

Distribution. Great Plains to southwestern Ontario (Fig. 5).


Identification
Extracted from: Brumley R.L., (1965). A Revision of the Bee Genus Epeolus Latreille of Western America North of Mexico. All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 2682

Female. Length 7 to 9 mm; forewing length 5 to 7 mm; labrum, clypeus apically or entirely, antennae reddish orange, except often mahogany on apical flagellomeres; legs entirely reddish orange ; thorax black , except reddish orange on pronotal lobes, lateral margins of scutum, mesopleuron above, scutellum, axillae; metasomal tergites black through deep reddish mahogany to reddish orange; face with appressed, silvery pubescence around antennal fossae, sparser on vertex and clypeus ; pronotum , metanotum with dense , subyellowish to whitish pubescence; scutum with subsilvery to subyellowish pubescence varying from nearly nude with two antero-median, longitudinal lines and lateral and posterior margins well defined to nearly uniformly pubescent with lines almost obscured ; mesopleuron nearly nude below, usually with some silvery pubescence above; metasomal tergite I with dense whitish to yellowish pubescence, except sparsely pubescent or nearly nude with short, coppery hairs on a long, narrow, transverse band on disc; tergites II, Ill, IV with whitish to yellowish apical fasciae, often with diffuse hairs on discs ; tergite V with lateral patches of whitish to yellowish pubescence ; sternite V usually with a short, coppery to silvery, regular, api cal fimbria; pseudopygidium usually about two and one half times broader than long ; clypeus rugosa-punctate, larger punctures i ntermixed with the small, particularly laterally , interspaces variable, often larger than a puncture, apical margin impunctate; frons above, vertex with larger, coarser punctures; scutum, scutellum, axillae, mesopleuron rugosa-punctate, interspaces larger on mesopleuron below; propodeal enclosure moderately rugose dorsally , finely to moderately, irregularly , transversely striate medially ; lateral areas of posterior face of propode~m closely, coarsely punctured; forewings with three submarginal cells, hyaline, nearly nude basally, darker, more pubescent apically, veins ferruginous to mahogany; flagellomere II approximately two-thirds as broad as long; preocci pital ridge joins hypostomal carina on fossa of mouthparts, often pushing up a tooth and is angulate at its dorsal margin behind compound eye; apical portion of metasomal tergites (underlying fasciae) weakly depressed; axillae distinctly arcuate on lateral margins and extend well beyond essentially horizontal dorsal face of scutell~~. tips often weakly bent away from sides of scutellum and usually not finely pointed; scutellu~ with an extremely shallow, median emargination, occasionally moderately ernarginate; metanorurn with a small to moderate sized blunt, median projection.

Male· Length 5.5 to 9rnrn;forewing length 5 to 7 rnrn; This sex differs from the female as follows : labrum, clypeus, thorax from reddish orange to black; metasomal tergites black to reddish mahogany; clypeus, mesopleuron often more pubescent; flagellomere II approximately as broad as long; sternites IV, V with subapical rows of long, coppery to silvery hairs; pygidiurn reddish orange, broadly rounded to subtruncate apically, with large, coarse rather dense punctures; metasomal tergites (underlying fasciae) moderately to strongly depressed.


Names
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Updated: 2024-03-29 06:55:28 gmt
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