Megachile sedilloti Pérez 1895

Praz, Christophe, Al-Shahat, Ahmed M. & Gadallah, Neveen S., 2021, Taxonomic revision of the subgenus Eutricharaea Thomson in Egypt, with a key to the species and the description of two new species (Hymenoptera, Anthophila Megachilidae, genus Megachile Latreille), Zootaxa 5032 (3), pp. 301-330 : 321

Megachile sedilloti Pérez 1895

Figs 45–48 .

Megachile sedilloti Pérez 1895: 24 , ♀, “[no locality indicated; Kairouan v. 1884 (= Kairouan, Tunisia)]”, lectotype ♀, paralectotype ♀, by designation of Praz (2017: 8), MNHN. Megachile cyrenaica Schulthess 1924: 312 , ♀, “Cyrenaica [ Libya]”. Holotype ♀, ETHZ. Synonymy in Praz (2017: 10). Megachile fumosa Alfken 1934: 150 , ♀, “Edfina [Idfina, Egypt]”. Holotype ♀, ZMHB. Synonymy in Praz (2017: 10). Megachile fulvocrinita Alfken 1934: 159 , 160, ♀ ♂, “[no locality given: Egypt]”. Type material not located. Synonymy in Praz

(2017: 10).

Additional material: EGYPT: 1 ♂, Abu Qeer (Alexandria), 17.v.1915, leg. Story (sweep net) ( PPDD) ; 2 ♂, Burg (Cairo), 4.v.1955, leg. Sh. M. & Shafik ( EFC) ; 21 ♀, Burg (Cairo), 4.v.1955, leg. Sh. M. ( EFC) ; 2 ♀, Alex- andria, 30.v.1939 ( ASUA) ; 1 ♀, Dekhela , 13.v.1959 ; 3 ♂, Abu Qeer (Alexandria), 21.iv.1952, leg. Saleh ( ASUA) ; TUNISIA: 1 ♂, 1 ♀, Bou Hedma NP, 8–9.v.[20]17, leg. H. Chamkhi ( CPCN) .

Distribution: Egypt, Libya, Tunisia.

Diagnosis: Female: This large species of Eutricharaea (body length 13–14 mm) is sculpturally highly similar to Megachile deceptoria Pérez 1890 . Common features of both M. sedilloti and M. deceptoria are the following: mandible robust, 4-toothed, with tooth 1 robust, and with reduced tufts of hairs apically ( Fig. 46 ); another distinctive feature of both species is the carina along the preoccipital ridge laterally, the comparatively short vertex (ocelloccipital distance approximately one diameter of lateral ocellus; Fig. 45 ) and the particularly coarse punctures on the vertex laterally ( Fig. 45 ). M. sedilloti is larger (13–14 mm) than M. deceptoria (usually 10–12 mm), although considerable size variation is observed in the latter species. We could not find consistent sculptural differences between these two species, which may eventually be treated as conspecific. M. sedilloti presents a highly variable vestiture color: some forms have the entire vestiture black, while other completely white; this variation does not follow a geographic pattern.

Male: Highly similar to Megachile deceptoria , but larger. Both species are characterized by the strongly produced apical margin of T5 ( Fig. 48 ), which is not covered by a dense fringe of hairs. Compared to M. deceptoria , M. sedilloti is larger (13 mm versus 11–12 mm for M. deceptoria ), and the ocelloccipital distance is markedly longer than twice the diameter of the lateral ocellus ( Fig. 47 ) (usually 1.5 times in M. deceptoria ).

Note: As far as we known, M. sedilloti and M. deceptoria do not occur in sympatry. M. deceptoria is distributed in Southern Europe, in Turkey and eastwards at least to Iran; in North Africa we know the species so far from Morocco and northern Tunisia.

Figures

FIGURES 45–48. Megachile sedilloti. 45. Dorsal view of mesosoma and head of female. 46. Front view of female. 47. Dorsal view of mesosoma and head of male. 48. Dorsal view of apical part of metasoma of male.