Colletes latipes Friese 1915

Kuhlmann, Michael & Pauly, Alain, 2013, The bee genus Colletes Latreille 1802 in Ethiopia (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Colletidae), Zootaxa 3693 (2), pp. 267-292 : 283-287

Colletes latipes Friese 1915

( Figs 14–16 )

Colletes latipes Friese 1915: 266 , 268, 277–278, 3 lectotype [designated by Kuhlmann, 1998] (type locality: “NO.-Afrika, Abessinien, Harrar”).

Diagnosis. Colletes latipes belongs to the Palaearctic C. cunicularius species-group as indicated by the morphology of S7 ( Fig. 15 d) (Kuhlmann 2000) and is unmistakable among the Afrotropical Colletes for the following set of characters: large body size in combination with elongate malar area ( Fig. 14 b), lack of distinct apical tergal hair bands and abundant long erect hairs on discs of all terga ( Figs 14 d, 15b). The distinctly sulcate gonocoxite is unique amongst all the Colletes species known to MK.

Description. Female. Bl = 12.0–14.0 mm. Head. Head much longer than wide. Integument black. Face except clypeus densely covered with long, yellowish-brown to blackish, erect hairs. Clypeus protruding and strongly convex with shallow longitudinal median depression in lower part, supraclypeal area rectangular and convex in profile. Clypeus coarsely and relatively densely punctate; surface between punctures shiny ( Fig. 14 b). Supraclypeal area with few, relatively small punctures; surface slightly shagreened but shiny. Malar area elongate, medially about 1.5 times as long as width of mandible base, finely striate. Antenna black. Mesosoma. Integument black. Mesoscutal disc between punctures smooth and shiny; disc densely punctate (i = 0.5–1.0d). Scutellum anteriorly almost impunctate with dense punctation apically, surface anteriorly smooth and shiny, posteriorly shagreened and matt ( Fig. 14 c). Mesoscutum, scutellum, metanotum, mesepisternum and propodeum covered with yellowishbrown, erect hairs; on mesoscutum and scutellum intermixed with blackish hairs ( Fig. 14 a, c). Wings. Distinctly yellowish-brown; wing venation brown. Legs. Integument black. Vestiture yellowish, partly with darker brown hairs, scopa yellowish-brown with darker brown hairs intermixed. Metasoma. Integument black except narrow apical margins of terga reddish to brownish translucent; T1–T3 with slight oily-bluish sheen. T1 sparsely, laterally more densely covered with long, erect yellowish hairs ( Fig. 14 d); discs of T3–T5 with short but successively longer black hairs; apical tergal hair bands missing, T2–T4 on apical tergal depression laterally with patches of short, appressed white hairs ( Fig. 14 a, d). T1 densely and finely punctate (i <d), disc smooth and shiny between punctures, apical depression shagreened and matt; following terga punctation successively finer and disappearing from T3, surface finely shagreened and matt.

Male. Bl = 11.5–13.0 mm. Head. Head much longer than wide. Integument black. Face densely covered with long, yellowish-brown, erect hairs. Clypeus protruding and strongly convex. Malar area elongate, medially more than two times as long as width of mandible base, finely striate. Antenna black. Mesosoma. Integument black. Mesoscutal disc between punctures shagreened and matt; disc densely punctate (i = 0.5–1.0d). Scutellum anteriorly sparsely punctate with denser punctation apically, surface shagreened and matt. Mesoscutum, scutellum, metanotum, mesepisternum and propodeum covered with long yellowish-brown, erect hairs with dark brown hairs intermixed ( Fig. 15 a). Wings. Distinctly yellowish-brown; wing venation dark brown. Legs. Integument black, apical tarsi and claws, basal, apical and dorsal margin of hind tibia and apical part of hind basitarsus yellowishbrown. Tibiae and particularly hind tibia swollen, mid and especially hind basitarsus broadened ( Fig. 15 c). Vestiture yellowish-brown. Metasoma. Integument black. T1–T5 with abundant long but successively shorter, yellowish-brown, erect hairs; T6–T7 with short erect, blackish hairs ( Fig. 15 a, b); no apical tergal hair bands. T1 densely and finely but indistinctly punctate (i <d); on following terga punctation successively finer and disappearing from T3, surface shagreened and matt ( Fig. 15 b). S1 apicomedially with a large patch of short, appressed orange hairs. Terminalia. Genitalia and S7 as illustrated ( Fig. 15 d–f).

Material examined (12 specimens). Type material: male Lectotype, two male Paralectotypes, ETHIOPIA: Abessinien, Harrar 11 [E42.07 N09.18], Kristensen (ZMHB).

Additional material: ETHIOPIA: 1 Ƥ, Amhara region, Simien Mountains, near Chennek Camp [E38.10.07 N13.14.53], 3575m, 18.x.2011, Zewdu A., Ocimum sp. (RCMK); 1 Ƥ, 1 3, Amhara region, Simien Mountains, near Sankaber Camp [E38.01.23 N13.13.55], 3252m, 17.x.2011, Zewdu A., Satureja simensis , Plectranthus sp. (RBINS); 1 3, Amhara region, Simien Mountains, near Sankaber, yellow pan trap [E38.01.23 N13.13.55], 3252m, 17.x.2011, A. Pauly & J.L. Boevé (RBINS); 3 3, Amhara region, Simien Mountains, near Sankaber Camp [E38.01.23 N13.13.55], 3252m, 17.x.2011, A. Pauly, Trifolium acaule (RBINS, RCMK); 2 3, Mt. Chillalo, 3000m, 25.viii.1945, K.M. Guichard (BMNH, RCMK).

General distribution. This species seems to be endemic to the Ethiopian highlands ( Fig. 16 ).

Floral hosts. Trifolium acaule (Fabaceae) , Ocimum sp., Plectranthus sp., Satureja simensis (Lamiaceae) .

Seasonal activity (first–last observations). VIII–X.

Figures

FIGURE 14. Colletes latipes Friese, female: a. specimen, lateral view; b. head; c. scutum and scutellum; d. metasomal terga 1 and 2. Scale bar: 1 mm.

FIGURE 15. Colletes latipes Friese, male: a. specimen, lateral view; b. metasomal terga 1 and 2; c. hind basitarsus; d. metasomal sternum 7 (dorsal view); e. genitalia (dorsal view); f. gonostylus (lateral view). Scale bar: 1 mm.

FIGURE 16. Distribution of Colletes langano Kuhlmann sp. n., C. latipes Friese and C. microdontus Cockerell.