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Reprinted with permission from: Rightmyer, M.G. A Review of the Cleptoparasitic Bee Genus Triepeolus (Hymenoptera: Apidae) TRIEPEOLUS DONATUS (SMITH)
(Figs. 58, 61, 62, 252)
Epeolus donatus Smith 1854: 256 [Holotype: The Natural History Museum, London No. 17B.519; female, (Mount Pleasant, Jefferson Co., Ohio)].
Triepeolus donatus; Robertson 1901: 231; Mitchell 1962: 467–468 [redescription].
Triepeolus cirsianus Mitchell 1962: 463–464 [Holotype: Purdue Entomological Research Collections; male, Warren Co., Indiana, 11 August 1953; thistle]. new synonymy
Triepeolus crisianus; Commonwealth Institute of Entomology 1962: 312 [lapsus calami].
Description.—Length ca. 10–13 mm; ITW 2.5–2.7 (rarely as small as 2.0) mm. Integument black (sometimes with purplish tint), with red on distal half of mandible (specimens from Iowa, Minnesota, and North Dakota with red legs); dorsum of mesosoma and metasoma with bands of pale gray to white setae. Face elongate; clypeus with strong to moderate midline present and weak larger punctures, asetose or covered with white setae. Paramedian band clearly separated from other pale setae on mesoscutum (females and some males), or connected laterally to diffuse white setae on anterior margin on mesoscutum (most males). Scutellum moderately bigibbous; axillar spine triangular, reaching midpoint of scutellum. Mesepisternum with relatively sparse, long, erect, simple setae; punctures small, nearly contiguous to separated by 1–2 puncture widths in some places, especially ventrally; integument between flat or slightly raised (punctures generally denser and integument between sometimes slightly tuberculate in males, especially those from Midwestern states). T1 discal patch transversely ovate (sometimes subrectangular), with ATB interrupted medially; T2 with LLB reduced or forming very weakly acute, nearly 90 degree, angle with ATB (mostly on lateral surface of T2). Female: Pseudopygidial area subovate to subquadrate, with distinct basal shining crescent; S3–S4 with apical bands of pale setae, sometimes restricted laterally (Southeastern specimens usually with pale bands only S4, these bands sometimes reduced to a few setae on apicolateral margins); S5 straight in profile. Male: Pygidial plate of moderate size, with strong to weak basal transverse ridge; S2–S3 with apical bands of white setae; S4–S5 with apical fringes of setae pale brown intermixed with white (S4), or brown medially and white laterally (S5).
Comments.—This species is similar to T. texanus in size, the elongate face, and erect, simple setae on mesepisternum; however, in T. donatus the bands of setae are white (rather than pale yellow), the T1 discal patch is usually more ovate than rectangular, and the pseudopygidial area’s basal shining crescent is less strongly differentiated from the more apical, coarser setae. Triepeolus donatus is also similar to T. georgicus and T. atripes, especially in size and coloration, but unlike the latter two species, T. donatus has an elongate face and erect, simple setae on the mesepisternum. Triepeolus rugosus is similar in coloration, the elongate face, and erect, simple setae, but is generally smaller and has an irregularly punctate mesepisternum, with the integument between the punctures distinctly raised and somewhat tuberculate.
Distribution.—USA: Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin.
Host Records.—Eutechnia (sic) (=Melitoma) taurea (Say)? (Robertson 1901:231, adult entering nest); Melissodes (Heliomelissodes) desponsa Smith (John S. Ascher, in lit. 2004, unpublished data from observations and specimens in New York state). The Melitoma host record is for T. donatus entering the nest of Melitoma taurea, observed by W. H. Ashmead, who incorrectly concluded that T. donatus was the builder of the nest (Robertson, 1899).
Floral Records.—Carduus undulatus [= Cirsium undulatum (Nutt.) Spreng. var. undulatum], C. altissimus [= Cirsium altissimum (L.) Hill], Centaurea jacea L., C. vulgare (Savi) Ten., Inula helenium L., Monarda fistulosa L., Rudbeckia laciniata L., Silphium perfoliatum L.
Seasonal Records.—26 July to 8 October.
Specimens examined.—33 female, 40 male (ANN ARBOR, BERKELEY, BOULDER, CORVALLIS, DAVIS, ITHACA, LAWRENCE, LOGAN, LONDON, LOS ANGELES, NEW YORK, SAN FRANCISCO, TUCSON, URBANA, WASHINGTON D.C., WEST LAFAYETTE
Reprinted with permission from: Mitchell, T.B. 1962 Bees of the Eastern United States. North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Bulletin No. 152.
FEMALE—Length 11 mm.; entirely black, including antennae, legs and tegulae; space between margin of vertex and lateral ocelli slightly less than their diameter; cheeks about half width of eyes, slightly narrower below, posterior margin carinate; median length of labrum about two-thirds the breadth, apical margin with a pair of very minute denticles; basal segment of flagellum only slightly shorter than segment 2, median segments considerably longer than broad; posterior margin of scutellum broadly outcurved, very faintly impressed medially, free part of axillae very short, tips barely attaining mid transverse line of scutellum (similar to cressonii, fig. 112); wings lightly and rather uniformly infuscated, with the usual three submarginal cells, veins piceous to black; face with a small amount of appressed silvery tomentum between bases of antennae and eyes, with somewhat thinner but more elongate and erect pubescence above antennae; margin of pronotum rather narrowly whitish tomentose, tubercles with a fringe of short, whitish hairs; scutum with a pair of elongate patches of pale pubescence on each side of mid-line and just anterior to transverse mid-line, lateral margins and scutello-mesothoracic suture thinly tomentose; metanotum and adjacent margin of scutellum rather densely whitish tomentose, with some elongate, whitish hairs at each end, back of wings, the adjacent lateral areas of propodeum more or less densely whitish tomentose; pleura above with a rather small patch of white tomentum adjacent to tubercles and tegulae; basal abdominal tergum with a very broad, transverse, black tomentose patch anterior face largely whitish tomentose, and apical impressed area with a dense, transverse, whitish fascia, these rather narrowly connected at each extreme side, the fascia slightly interrupted medially; terga 2-4 with rather broad, transverse apical fasciae, these slightly separated from rims on 2 and 3 and tergum 2 with a very small, lateral patch toward each side projecting from anterior margin of the fascia; tergum 5 with a rather extensive, lateral patch of greyish-white tomentum on each side; tegulae with minute, densely crowded punctures on inner side, becoming more sparsely punctate to the outer impunctate rims; punctures of face above antennae rather irregular, very close, coarse and deep, becoming somewhat more regular but also finer and crowded on cheeks below, very fine and densely crowded below antennae, clypeus with scattered, shallow, coarse punctures on a more finely punctate field; scutum rather coarsely and closely punctate throughout, punctures somewhat more distinctly separated along mid-line toward anterior third, those on scutellum somewhat finer and only slightly separated, those on axillae slightly coarser; pleura below shining, punctures quite deep and distinct, well separated but not sparse, becoming quite densely crowded over upper half; punctures of abdominal terga beneath the dense, black tomentum rather minute and close throughout, those on tergum 5 somewhat more distinct but still very close; pseudopygidium about as broad as its median length, evenly rounded apically, covered with fine, erect but quite short setae; sternum 5 broadly convex in ventral view.
MALE—Answers in general to description of female; segments of antennae somewhat shorter, very slightly longer than broad; lower part of face more densely pale tomentose, and upper part more copiously pubescent; punctures of scutum and scutellum somewhat less densely crowded, median impression of scutellum somewhat more distinct; terga 5 and 6 with rather dense and entire, whitish, apical fasciae; sterna 4 and 5 with rather thin, subapical fringes of elongate, slightly curved setae; pygidial plate strongly elevated above disc of tergum 7, apical portion beyond the transverse ridge slightly longer than broad, rather narrowly rounded, margin cannate, with a few scattered, shallow punctures, the more basal area very densely and finely punctate and thinly tomentose.
DISTRIBUTION—Wisconsin to the New England states, south to Georgia; July to October.
FLOWER RECORDS—Aster, Chrysopsis, Cirsium and Helianthus. Robertson (1929) records this species on Bidens, Coreopsis, Eupatorium, Polygonum, Rudbeckia and Verbena.
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