Andrena (Aciandrena) turmalina Pisanty & Wood sp. nov.

(Figs. 36–43)

Female (Fig. 36).

Body length: 4.5–5 mm.

Colour. Body dark brown to black. Legs brown to almost black (Fig. 36). Anterior side of flagellomeres 4–10 weakly to strongly reddish (Figs. 36–37). Wings slightly infuscate, veins dark brown, stigma dark brown peripherally, light brown centrally (Fig. 36). Tergal marginal zones brown, weakly yellowish apically (Fig. 39).

Pubescence. Hairs on body and legs mostly thin, short and sparse, moderately bright, their colour varying from whitish to brown, partly depending on angle of view (Fig. 36). Clypeus and supraclypeal area with sparse and thin, minutely plumose short brown hairs (Fig. 37). Paraocular area with short plumose hairs, brown on its lower half, whitish on upper half. Scape with short brown plumose hairs. Facial foveae brown (Fig. 38). Vertex with sparse, long, erect brown hairs. Mesonotum, scutellum and metanotum with sparse, erect, brown plumose hair, mostly short, interspersed with few long hairs (Fig. 38). Mesepisternum with medium-lengthed whitish plumose hairs. Propodeal corbicula incomplete, posterodorsal fringe with sparse, long whitish plumose hairs, corbicular surface with sparse, long, whitish simple hairs. Leg hair short, white to brown (Fig. 36). Flocculus incomplete, white. Tibial scopal hairs simple, brownish (Fig. 36). Tergal discs almost bare, 2–4 with sparse, extremely short inconspicuous hair. Tergal marginal zones 2–4 with very sparse, thin, short brown hair mostly on lateral areas, longer on tergum 4, not forming distinct hair bands. Terminal fringe brown (Fig. 39).

Head (Figs. 37–38). 1.1 times broader than long. Mandibles bidentate, weakly crossed. Galea shiny, finely and shallowly shagreened. Labral process very small, distinctly triangular. Clypeus very slightly convex, not protuberant, very shiny, basal 2/3 superficially shagreened, apical 1/3 smooth, punctation sparse, distance between punctures 2–4 puncture diameters, without clear impunctate midline (Fig. 37). Supraclypeal area very finely, shallowly shagreened. Paraocular area densely and finely punctured in lower part, longitudinally striated in upper part (area between fovea and frons). Flagellomere 1 slightly longer than 2+3, 2 about as long as 3. Frons shagreened, impunctate, not striated. Facial foveae long and narrow, 0.5 times as broad as antennocular distance, extending from level of lower end of lateral ocellus to middle of antennal socket, lower part narrower and distinctly separated from compound eye (Fig. 37). Distance of fovea from lateral ocellus 1 ocellus diameter. Ocelloccipital distance about 0.4 ocellus diameter. Vertex strongly carinate and concave, dorsoposterior margin of genal area slightly carinate (Fig. 38).

Mesosoma (Fig. 38). Mesonotum and scutellum shiny, moderately and uniformly shagreened, sparsely, shallowly and finely punctured, distance between punctures 2–4 puncture diameters (Fig. 38). Mesepisternum and propodeum finely reticulated, impunctate. Propodeal triangle broad, delineated by weak carina, sculpturing stronger and coarser than on flanking areas, basal margin often with hint of extremely short radial rugae (Fig. 38). Hind leg pretarsal claw with distinct inner tooth. Recurrent vein 1 meets submarginal cell 2 at its middle or proximal to it. Submarginal crossvein 1 meets marginal cell 2–3 vein widths from stigma. Nervulus strongly antefurcal (Fig. 36).

Metasoma (Fig. 39). Tergal discs impunctate, distinctly shagreened. Tergal marginal zones impunctate, superficially shagreened basally, almost smooth apically, 2–4 moderately depressed and occupying 1/3–1/2 of tergal length.

Male (Fig. 40).

Body length: 4.5 mm.

Colour. Similar to female (clypeus and paraocular areas dark).

Pubescence. Clypeus with sparse, short whitish plumose hairs (Fig. 41). Lower half of paraocular area with medium-lengthed whitish plumose hairs. Scape with medium-lengthed, white to brownish plumose hairs. Frons with minute brown hairs. Vertex with sparse, long, brownish-white erect plumose hairs (Fig. 40). Genal area with short brown hairs dorsally, medium to long white hairs ventrally. Mesonotum, scutellum and metanotum with sparse, short to long, white to brownish hair. Mesepisternum with long white plumose hairs. Propodeum with mediumlengthed, strongly plumose whitish hairs. Femora and tibiae with mostly whitish hair; tarsi with white to light brown hair (Fig. 40). Tergal discs almost bare, with sparse, minute inconspicuous white hair. Tergal marginal zones 2–4 with very sparse, thin, short white to brownish hair mostly on lateral areas, longer on tergum 4, not forming distinct hair bands. Tergal marginal zone 5 with weak uninterrupted band of sparse and thin, whitish-brownish hair. Terminal fringe whitish to light brown (Fig. 42).

Head (Fig. 41). Labral process trapezoidal, of moderate width. Clypeus slightly elevated, flattened medially, very shiny, basal 1/3–1/2 shallowly shagreened, apical 1/2–2/3 smooth, punctation fine and sparse, distance between punctures 2–3 puncture diameters, with impunctate midline broadening apically. Flagellomere 1 slightly shorter than 2+3, 2 as long as 3 or slightly longer. Rest of head as in female.

Mesosoma. Basal margin of propodeal triangle distinctly radially rugose. Hind leg pretarsal claws bidentate. Rest of mesosoma as in female.

Metasoma (Fig. 42). Tergal discs mostly shagreened and impunctate, except for apical margin of discs 2–4 which is often smooth and very sparsely, finely punctured. Tergal marginal zones as in female.

Genitalia and hidden sterna (Fig. 43). Dorsal gonocoxite lobes developed, rounded. Gonostyli simple, elongate and flattened, more or less uniformly broad, rounded apically, inner margin with small, distinct bulge in midlength. Penis valves moderately broad basally, gradually narrowing apically (Fig. 43). Sternum 8 simple, columnar, apical process broadened, blunt-ended.

Diagnosis. Andrena turmalina stands out among all other Aciandrena in its combination of shiny, shallowly shagreened and punctured cuticle, especially in the clypeus and mesonotum; slightly elongate, weakly domed, and centrally slightly flattened clypeus that is additionally black-marked in the male sex; the female’s extremely short and pointed, triangular labral process; and the sparse, brownish (particularly in the female) pubescence.

Distribution: High altitudes in Iran, southeast Turkey and northern Israel. Likely present also in Lebanon and Syria.

Flight period: April–June.

Flower records: Liliaceae: Gagea sp. Most specimens collected from pan traps.

Holotype: ISRAEL: Mount Hermon [Har Hermon], 1610 m, 33.300°N 35.767°E, 7.iv.2021, G. Pisanty, pan trap, ♀ (SMNHTAU:360801).

Paratypes: IRAN: Kurdistan province, Paniran, 1450 m, 14.v.2016, M. Kafka (1♀) ; Tehran env., 2.v.1999, K. Deneš (1♀); ISRAEL: Mount Hermon [Har Hermon], 1420 m, 33.2855°N 35.763°E, 7.iv.2021, G. Pisanty, pan traps (10♀) ; 1480 m, 33.292°N 35.7595°E, 7.iv.2021, G. Pisanty, pan traps (5♀); 1610 m, 33.300°N 35.767°E, 7.iv.2021, G. Pisanty, pan traps (22♀, 10♂); 1644 m, 33.2991°N 35.7667°E, 16.iv.2022, G. Pisanty, pan traps (2♀, 22♂); 33.2992°N 35.767°E, 16.iv.2022, G. Pisanty, on Gagea (12♂); 33.2992°N 35.7670°E, 16.iv.2022, G. Pisanty, pan traps (1♀, 13♂); 1645 m, 33.2994°N 35.7675°E, 16.iv.2021, G. Pisanty, pan traps (8♀) and sweeping (1♀); [Hermon], 1642 m, 33.2992°N 35.7668°E, 16.iv.2022, G. Pisanty, sweeping (1♂) ; TURKEY: Tanin-TaninPass, 1700 m, 12.vi.1984, K. Warncke (1♀) (ES, NHMUK, OLML, RMNH, SMNHTAU, TJW, ZMHB, ZSMC) .

Etymology. turmalina = Spanish for tourmaline, a type of small black shiny gemstone, in reference to the small, black, and shiny nature of this species. The species epithet is a noun in apposition.