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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.
flavofasciatus apart from all other North American Epeolus: the dorsum of the mesosoma
and metasoma have bright or pale yellow pubescence, the mesoscutum has distinct
paramedian bands, the axilla does not attain the midlength of the mesoscutellum, and
T1 has a median triangular or semicircular discal patch. Epeolus canadensis resembles
E. flavofasciatus in that the integument is mostly black, the axilla does not attain the
midlength of the mesoscutellum, and T1 has a median triangular or semicircular discal
patch, but in E. canadensis the mesoscutum has a distinct anteromedial patch of pale
tomentum instead of paramedian bands. Epeolus flavofasciatus is quite large for Epeolus
(≥9 mm in length), and the pygidial plate of the male is narrower than that in most species, so males may be confused with Triepeolus. However, in E. flavofasciatus the mandible has a blunt, obtuse preapical tooth, whereas in all Triepeolus the mandible is simple.
Redescription. FEMALE: Length 9.6 mm; head length 2.4 mm; head width 3.3
mm; fore wing length 8.5 mm.
Integument coloration. Mostly black; notable exceptions as follows: partially to entirely ferruginous on mandible, antenna, pronotal lobe, tegula, axilla, legs, and pygidial
plate. Mandible with apex darker than all but extreme base; preapical tooth lighter
than mandibular apex (difficult to see in the E. flavofasciatus lectotype because mandible closed; described from non-type specimens). Antenna brown except scape, pedicel,
and F1 extensively orange. F2 with orange spot basally. Pronotal lobe and tegula pale
ferruginous to amber. Wing membrane dusky subhyaline, slightly darker at apex. Legs
more extensively reddish orange than brown or black.
Pubescence. Face with tomentum densest around antennal socket. Tomentum
slightly sparser on clypeus; upper paraocular and frontal areas, and vertexal area mostly
exposed. Dorsum of mesosoma and metasoma with bands of off-white and bright to
pale yellow short appressed setae. Mesoscutum with paramedian band. Mesopleuron
sparsely hairy except mesally with densely hairy sigmoid patch and ventrally. Metanotum with tomentum uninterrupted, uniformly black (uniformly pale yellow in the E.
agaricifer holotype and multiple non-type specimens, uniformly black or to varying
degrees bright or pale yellow laterally and black medially in other non-type specimens).
T1 with median semicircular black discal patch enclosed by pale tomentum (basal fascia widely separated medially and with much tomentum rubbed off in the E. flavofasciatus lectotype, but conspicuously arched and narrowly interrupted medially in nontype specimens). T2–T4 with fasciae complete, T2 with fascia without anterolateral
extensions of tomentum. T5 with two large patches of pale tomentum lateral to and separate from pseudopygidial area. T5 with pseudopygidial area lunate, its apex more
than twice as wide as medial length, indicated by silvery setae on disc of apicomedial
region elevated from rest of tergum. S5 with apical fimbria of coppery to silvery hairs
not extending beyond apex of sternum by much more than 1/4 MOD.
Surface sculpture. Punctures dense. Labrum with larger punctures than clypeus, but
punctures of both equally dense (i<1d). Small impunctate matte spot lateral to lateral
ocellus. Mesoscutum, mesoscutellum, and axilla coarsely and densely rugose-punctate.
Tegula very densely punctate mesally (i<1d), less so laterally (i=1–2d). Mesopleuron
with ventrolateral half densely punctate (i<1d); mesopleuron with punctures more or
less equally dense throughout. Metasomal terga with punctures very fine, dense (i≈1d),
evenly distributed on disc.
Structure. Labral apex with pair of small denticles preceded by submedial pair of
small denticles and separated by shallow concavity. Frontal keel not strongly raised.
Scape with greatest length 1.7 × greatest width. F2 noticeably longer than wide (L/W
ratio = 1.4). Preoccipital ridge not joining hypostomal carina, from which it is separated by about 1.5–2 MOD at its terminal (difficult to see in the E. flavofasciatus
lectotype; described from non-type specimens). Mesoscutellum moderately bigibbous.
Axilla small to intermediate in size, its lateral margin (L) less than half as long as mesoscutellar width (W) (L/W ratio = 0.4) and tip not extending beyond midlength of mesoscutellum; axilla with tip clearly visible, but unattached to mesoscutellum for less
than 1/3 the medial length of axilla; axilla with lateral margin relatively straight and
without carina. Fore wing with three submarginal cells. Pygidial plate apically truncate.
MALE: Description as for female except for usual secondary sexual characters and
as follows: F2 shorter, but still longer than wide (L/W ratio = 1.2); S3–S5 with much
longer coppery to silvery subapical hairs, which individually are often darker apically;
pygidial plate unusually narrow (Triepeolus-like) and apically rounded, with large deep
punctures closely clustered.
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