Lasioglossum (Dialictus) ellisiae (Sandhouse)

Gibbs, Jason, 2011, Revision of the metallic Lasioglossum (Dialictus) of eastern North America (Hymenoptera: Halictidae: Halictini), Zootaxa 3073, pp. 1-216 : 88

Lasioglossum (Dialictus) ellisiae (Sandhouse)

Halictus (Chloralictus) ellisiae Sandhouse, 1924: 11 . Ƥ.

Holotype. USA, Massachusetts, Forest Hills, 5.viii.1901, (W.M. Wheeler); [ NMNH: 26400]. Examined.

Taxonomy. Michener, 1951: Lasioglossum (Chloralictus) ellisiae , p. 1113 (catalogue); Mitchell, 1960: Dialictus tegularis Ƥ3 (in part), p. 423 (redescription, key, synonymy); Gibbs, 2009a: Lasioglossum (Dialictus) ellisiae Ƥ3, p. 18 (redescription); Gibbs, 2010b: Lasioglossum (Dialictus) ellisiae Ƥ3, p. 120 (redescription, key).

Diagnosis. Female L. ellisiae can be recognised by the following diagnostic combination: tegula enlarged, strongly punctate with distinct posterior angle ( Fig. 7 A), and mesepisternal punctures separated by smooth interspaces with very little microsculpture. They are most similar to L. tegulare , which has strong microsculpture between the mesepisternal punctures.

Male L. ellisiae also have an enlarged tegula ( Fig. 7 A) and can be distinguished from similar species by sparse punctation on T2 immediately basal of premarginal line ( Fig. 38 B). They are most similar to L. tegulare , which has uniformly dense punctures on T2 basal of premarginal line.

Range. Ontario and Massachusetts, west to Minnesota, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to North Carolina. USA: IL, IN, MA, ME, MI, MN, NC, NY, PA, WI. CANADA: ON.

DNA Barcode. Available. Multiple sequences.

Comments. Common. Until recently, L. ellisiae was considered a synonym of L. tegulare ( Gibbs 2009a, see also Gibbs 2010b). For a complete treatment of L. ellisiae and related species in eastern North America see Gibbs (2009a).

Figures

FIGURE 7. Tegula (A) punctate, enlarged, punctate with posterior angle (B) ovoid, without posterior angle (L. nymphaearum). (From Gibbs 2010 b).

FIGURE 38. T 2 punctures (A) dense basal to premarginal line, (B) sparse basal to premarginal line (L. ellisiae). (From Gibbs 2010 b).