Andrena (incertae sedis) remota Wood, 2024

Pisanty, Gideon & Wood, Thomas James, 2024, The early-diverging subgenera of the bee genus Andrena (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae) in the Old World, Zootaxa 5474 (5), pp. 451-488 : 468-471

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5474.5.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:3DDAA7F0-27D0-43E8-AAFB-E56F0E24FB3F
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12710348
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/077587FD-B85F-643F-FF6C-DDC5EC53FC26
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Andrena (incertae sedis) remota Wood
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Andrena (incertae sedis) remota Wood sp. nov.

( Figs. 59–64 View FIGURES 59–64 )

Female ( Fig. 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ).

Body length: 12–13 mm.

Colour. Body predominantly dark; terga 1–4 with apical margins and ventrolateral segments broadly lightened hyaline-orange, tergum 5 entirely orange ( Figs. 60, 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Legs with apical tarsal segments of fore and mid legs and hind tibiae and tarsi lightened bright orange ( Figs. 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Flagellomeres 4–12 ventrally lightened by presence of grey-brown scales ( Figs. 61, 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Wings hyaline to weakly infuscate, veins and stigma dark brown ( Fig. 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ).

Pubescence. Head with moderately long minutely plumose hairs, hairs pale on gena, clypeus, and around antennal insertions, becoming dark brown on paraocular areas, frons, and vertex ( Figs. 59, 61, 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Mesosoma with long minutely plumose hairs, hairs of mesepisternum, propodeum, metanotum, posterior margin of scutellum, and anterior margin of scutum white, remaining hairs of scutum and scutellum black ( Figs. 59, 62, 64 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Metasoma with scattered short golden hairs on tergal discs, sterna with pale to golden plumose hairs forming long fringes on marginal areas. Terminal fringe orange to orange-brown ( Figs. 60, 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Facial foveae with very dense short dark brown hair ( Figs. 59, 61 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Propodeal corbicula incomplete, dorsoposterior fringe composed of moderately long finely plumose white hairs, corbicula surface scattered short whitish hairs ( Fig. 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Legs with variable pubescence; fore and mid femora with whitish to light brownish hairs, outer surface of fore and mid tibiae with short dark brown pubescence, fore and mid tarsi with dense fringes of bristles, anteriorly orange, posteriorly dark brown ( Figs. 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Flocculus poorly developed, incomplete, pure white. Femoral and tibial scopae composed of simple, relatively thick sparse hairs, femoral scopae whitish, tibial scopae becoming more golden, dorsally with dark brown hairs as basitibial plate ( Figs. 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ).

Head ( Figs. 59, 61, 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ). 1.1 times broader than long ( Fig. 61 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Mandible bidentate. Galea finely shagreened, moderately shining. Labral process rounded rectangular, 3.5 times wider than long, surface with weak latitudinal wrinkles, weakly shining, anterior margin broadly but shallowly emarginate. Clypeus domed, medially slightly flattened, this appearing slightly 3-faced; underlying surface polished and shining, with only weak shagreen laterally; punctation deep but irregular, punctures separated by 0.5–2 puncture diameters, punctures of variable size, forming slightly raised impunctate longitudinal mid-line. Lower half of paraocular areas shagreened and very densely punctate, weakly shining ( Fig. 61 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Malar area linear ( Figs. 61, 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Supraclypeal area weakly domed, shagreened and weakly shining. Facial foveae moderately long, dorsally occupying ½ space between lateral ocellus and compound eye, separated from lateral ocellus by 1.5 times its diameter; foveae deeply impressed, slightly broadening medially before narrowing ventrally, ventrally extending only to lower margin of antennal insertions, at broadest clearly exceeding width of flagellum; separated from compound eye by narrow shiny cuticular strip ( Figs. 59, 61 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Flagellomere 1 equaling length of 2+3+4. Frons shagreened, weakly shining, densely but finely punctate ( Fig. 61 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Vertex immediately behind lateral ocelli very weakly shagreened, almost shining, otherwise shagreened and weakly shining; weakly sculptured areas posterolateral to the lateral ocelli impunctate, forming shining strips. Ocelloccipital distance 1.5 times diameter of lateral ocellus ( Figs. 59, 61 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Genal area subequal to diameter of compound eye, posterior margin rounded.

Mesosoma ( Figs. 59, 64 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Dorsolateral angle of pronotum weakly but distinctly elevated, lateral carina absent. Scutum and scutellum weakly shagreened, more or less shining, deeply and densely punctate, punctures separated by <0.5–1 puncture diameter ( Fig. 59 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Mesepisternum shagreened, surface with shallow punctures, punctures separated by 1 puncture diameter. Propodeum finely shagreened, dorsolateral parts shallowly punctate, propodeal triangle delineated by finely raised rim; entire surface weakly shining ( Fig. 64 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Inner side of hind femur not carinate. Inner hind tibial spur not broadened basally, straight, slightly curved near apex. Hind pretarsal claw with strong inner tooth. Stigma slender. Submarginal cross vein 1 meets marginal cell 8 vein widths from stigma. Recurrent vein 1 meets second submarginal cell slightly beyond its middle ( Fig. 62 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Nervulus strongly postfurcal.

Metasoma ( Figs. 60, 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Tergal discs finely shagreened, weakly shining, surface with scattered irregular punctures, punctures separated by 1–3 puncture diameters. Marginal areas not depressed, sculpture not differentiated from tergal discs ( Figs. 60, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ). Pygidial plate with strongly raised longitudinal ridge medially, remaining surface otherwise featureless, shagreened and dull.

Male. Unknown.

Diagnosis. Andrena remota is surprisingly similar to members of the subgenus A. ( Warnckandrena ), in large part due to the largely finely shagreened propodeum which lacks a clear horizontal basal area, the compound eyes which slightly converge dorsally, the deeply impressed facial foveae which are separated from the compound eyes by a narrow slightly elevated shining strip, the broad process of the labrum, the pronotum with a weak angle, flagellomere 1 equaling the length of flagellomeres 2+3+4, the slender stigma, the moderately large body size (for an Andrena ), and the lack of any other distinctive characters.

However, unlike Warnckandrena , Andrena remota has the scutum and scutellum with shallow but distinct and dense punctation that clearly contrasts the underlying surface which is shagreened and shining ( Fig. 59 View FIGURES 59–64 ; Warnckandrena has the scutum and scutellum largely shagreened and dull with superficial punctation that disappears into the background sculpture, Fig. 2 View FIGURES 1–9 ), the mesepisternum has shallow but distinct punctures, surface weakly shining ( Warnckandrena has the mesepisternum shagreened and almost dull, with obscure punctures), the nervulus is strongly postfurcal (interstitial to antefurcal in Warnckandrena ), the tergal punctation is irregular and scattered, punctures separated by 1–3 puncture diameters ( Fig. 60 View FIGURES 59–64 ; Warnckandrena has the tergal punctation fine and regular, typically separated by around 1 puncture diameter, Fig. 3 View FIGURES 1–9 ), the pygidial plate with clear elevated longitudinal ridge medially ( Warnckandrena has the pygidial plate flat over its entire surface), and the marginal areas and lateral parts of the terga are broadly lightened hyaline-orange ( Figs. 60, 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ; Warnckandrena has the terga almost entirely dark, at most with the apical rims narrowly lightened hyaline-brown, Figs. 3, 8 View FIGURES 1–9 , 10, 12, 14, 16 View FIGURES 10–17 ).

Separation from Andrena (Melittoides) sensu stricto can be made by some of the same characters; A. remota has the scutum and scutellum with shallow but distinct and dense punctation that clearly contrasts the underlying surface which is shagreened and shining ( Fig. 59 View FIGURES 59–64 ; A. melittoides has the scutum and scutellum finely shagreened and shining with extremely shallow and obscure punctures), by the longer ocelloccipital distance that is 1.5 times the diameter of a lateral ocellus ( A. melittoides has the ocelloccipital distance slightly but distinctly shorter than the diameter of a lateral ocellus), by the pygidial plate with clear elevated longitudinal ridge medially ( A. melittoides has the pygidial plate flat over its entire surface), by the colouration of the terga which in dorsal view have reddish-yellow markings restricted to the tergal margins, including the margins of T3–4 which are clearly lightened hyaline-orange ( Figs. 60, 62, 63 View FIGURES 59–64 ; A. melittoides has abundant reddish-yellow markings on the discs of T1–2, with tergal margins of T3–4 only faintly lightened hyaline-whitish, Fig. 65 View FIGURES 65–73 ), and by the smaller body size of 12–13 mm ( A. melittoides has a body length of 16–17 mm).

Distribution: Central China (Gansu).

Flight period: June.

Flower records: None.

Pollen preferences: Unknown.

Genetic sequences available: UCE data will be made public following future publications.

HOLOTYPE: CHINA • ♀; Kansu mer. [Gansu], Xiahe Labrang [Labrang Monastery]; 35.1984° N, 102.5098° E; 3300–3700 m a.s.l.; 1–15 Jun. 1998; V. Major leg.; OLML GoogleMaps .— PARATYPE: CHINA • 1♀; ibid.; OLML GoogleMaps .

Etymology. Feminine singular nominative form of the Latin adjective remotus meaning distant or remote, in reference to the strong separation between the true members of the subgenus Warnckandrena with an eastern limit in northern Iran, and A. remota which is currently known from 4,000 km further east in Central China.

Remarks. In a preliminary molecular phylogenetic analysis of ultraconserved element (UCE)data, A.remota was placed within the most basal clade of Andrena , as sister to A. curiosa + A. ramlehiana , i.e. the Warnckandrena clade (corresponding to clade 2 of Andrena in Pisanty et al. 2022; S. Bossert, M. Branstetter and the authors, unpublished results). However, though it is clearly related to Warnckandrena , A. remota displays several morphological characters that differ markedly from typical members of the subgenus, and it also occurs 4,000 km outside of its geographical range, deep in the Eastern Palaearctic realm. Further phylogenetic analysis, as well as more sampling in Central China (including the collection of males and possible related species) are needed to assess the subgeneric position of this taxon. If A. remota is indeed confirmed as the sister group to Warnckandrena in the strict sense, it may merit erection of a separate subgenus. For now, we leave A. remota as incertae sedis, pending further study.