Megachile adeloptera Schletterer

Eardley, Connal, 2012, A taxonomic revision of the southern African species of the subgenus Creightonella Cockerell (Apoidea: Megachilidae: Megachile Latreille), Zootaxa 3159, pp. 1-35 : 31

Megachile adeloptera Schletterer

Megachile adeloptera Schletterer, 1891: 11 , two female syntypes (ISNB) Democratic Republic of the Congo; Friese 1903: 285; Vachal 1903: 262.

Megachile (Megachile) adeloptera Schletterer : Friese 1909: 109, 326, 330, 334, 337, 351, 360–361, 367, 369.

Megachile (Creightonella) adeloptera Schletterer : Cockerell 1931: 163 –164.

Creightoniella[!] adeloptera (Schletterer) : Pasteels 1965: 13, 14, 19, 31–32, 33, 34, 35.

Creightonella adeloptera (Scheletterer) : Pauly 1998: 26.

Megachile rudissima Cockerell, 1931: 155 –157, female syntypes (MRAC) Democratic Republic of the Congo; Pasteels 1965: 31, syn.

Discussion. This species was described from the Democratic Republic of the Congo by Schletterer (1891) and later recorded from South Africa by Friese (1903). This apparently resulted from a misidentification, as no material of this species has been seen from southern Africa. It closely resembles M. ianthoptera , but in adeloptera the white areas on the metasoma are not as clearly defined as in ianthoptera and the male T7 is convex and not toothed distally. The type has been studied. It is in poor condition. Cockerell (1931) described rudissima and Pasteels (1965) synonymized it with adeloptera . The type was studied and the synonymy is here confirmed.

Material examined. Type material. Female syntype of Megachile adeloptera : ‘ Equateur – Congo Cap Van Gele, Megachile adeloptera Schletterer , TYPE’, in IRSN. Female syntype of Megachile rudissima : ‘ TYPE; MUSEE DU CONGO Coquinhatville 11/5/27 (Maus. Bequaert) (don Dr J. Bequaert); Megachile rudissima Ckll TYPE; Creightonella adeloptera Schlett. J. Pasteels det. 1961; Creightonella adeloptera Schlett. Female Det. D.B. Baker 1979’, in MRAC.