Amegilla (Zonamegilla) thorogoodi (Rayment)

Leijs, Remko, Batley, Michael & Hogendoorn, Katja, 2017, The genus Amegilla (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Anthophorini) in Australia: A revision of the subgenera Notomegilla and Zonamegilla, ZooKeys 653, pp. 79-140 : 126-129

Amegilla (Zonamegilla) thorogoodi (Rayment) Figs 13, 35, 48

Anthophora thorogoodi Rayment, 1939, p. 289.

Amegilla thorogoodi (Rayment) Michener, 1965, p. 217.

Amegilla (Zonamegilla) thorogoodi (Rayment) Brooks, 1988, p. 511.

Material examined.

95 females and 68 males.

Type data.

Holotype of thorogoodi : male, Proserpine, QLD, 15 Nov. 1937, ANIC 32-033973. (Hidden sterna and genitalia missing.)

Diagnosis.

Amegilla thorogoodi is distinguished from other Australian Zonamegilla species by the following characters: Scutal hair of both sexes brown; apical tergal hair bands predominantly blue. Hind basitibial streak of females short; pale pubescence of T5 forming a large medial patch (Fig. 35). Apical margin of S5 of males lacking a medial patch of dense hair; S7 with a moderately narrow medial ridge, a rounded apical projection and a Y-shaped brush (Fig. 48).

Description.

Female: Iron Range, 12.743S 143.2352E, 1 Jul 2007, R. Leijs & M. Batley, DNA voucher RB302 (RL838), SAMA 32-002603.

Length 13.5 mm; forewing length 9 mm.

Structure. Head: shortest distance between eyes equal to the length of the eye; clypeus protuberant, in profile 0.4 × width of eye; galea in repose reaching just reaching mid coxa; length of f1 3.2 × length of f2, 0.8 × length of scape (excluding basal bulb) and 1.5 × length of f10; length of f3-9 0.8 × width; IOD 1.6 × OOD; OS 0.5 × OOD. Coloration. Black except labrum, mandibles, scape, clypeus, paraocular and supraclypeal areas with pale yellow marks; pale mark on clypeus inverted T-shaped. Pubescence. Head: labrum white, remaining areas pale yellow, darker towards vertex with scattered black robust hairs on clypeus, paraocular areas, between antennae, near ocelli and on vertex; gena white, ginger towards vertex. Thorax: scutum ginger intermixed with black hair; pleura ginger with scattered black hair under wing base, white ventrally; thoracic sterna white; propodeum laterally light ginger with scattered black hairs. Legs: forefemur posteriorly with long white hair, foretibia and -tarsus whitish on outer surface, dark on inner surface; mid legs black, except greyish white hair on apex of femur and on outer surface of tibia and basitarsus and a dense patch of short white hair on posterior proximal part of femur; hind legs black, except white hair on apex of femur; tibia white on posterior rim, greyish-white with orange tinge in scopal area and black anteriorly; whitish patch on basal part of basitarsus; basitibial streak black, 0.3x length of femur. Metasoma: apical hair bands on margin T1-T4 iridescent blue with orange tinge, especially across anterior edge; T5 laterally with moderately long white hairs (Fig. 35), fimbria dark, medial patch distinct, complete, narrowing laterally, iridescence weak light blue, medial stripe overlapping fimbria; S3, S4 dark, posterolateral patches of white hairs; S5 dark. Punctation. Head: clypeus with close, medium sized, deep punctures, 0.1-0.8 puncture widths apart; labrum somewhat shiny, with close, small, shallow punctures, 0.3-1.0 puncture widths apart. Thorax: scutum shiny, with punctures 0.1-1.5 puncture widths apart. Metasoma: T1-T5 with open, punctures, 0.5-1.5 puncture widths apart.

Male: Bloomfield near rubbish tip, 15.9011S 143.34161E, Qld, 2 Jul 2007, DNA voucher RB311 (RL865), SAMA 32-002599.

Length 13 mm; forewing length 8 mm.

Structure. Head: shortest distance between eyes 0.7 × length of eye; clypeus protuberant, in profile 0.4 × width of eye; galea in repose reaching halfway between fore and mid coxae; length of f1 2.1 × length of f2, 0.5 × length of scape (excluding basal bulb) and as long f11; length of f3-10 1.3 × width; IOD 1.6 × OOD; OS 0.7 × OOD. Wings: length of marginal cell 0.9 × distance from apex of marginal cell to wing tip; length of vein M of hind wing 1.8 × length of second abscissa of M+Cu; length of jugal lobe about 0.4 × length of vannal lobe. Metasoma: apicomedial emargination of S5 wide and very shallow; S7 head large, medial ridge moderately narrow resulting in a narrow apical projection, large weakly pigmented windows and an inverted Y-shaped brush (Fig. 48); S8 apical emargination deep. Pubescence. Head: labrum white, remaining areas predominantly pale yellow, darker towards the vertex; scattered black robust hairs on clypeus, paraocular areas, frons, near ocelli and on vertex; gena white. Thorax: scutum ginger intermixed with black hairs; pleura ginger, white ventrally; propodeum laterally light ginger with scattered black hairs. Legs: forefemur posteriorly with long white hair, outer surface of tibia, tarsus light ginger, inner surface of tarsus dark; mid legs black, except white hair on apex of femur, posteriorly proximally on femur and on outer surface of tibia and basitarsus; hind legs black, except white hair on apex of femur and outer surface of tibia, white patch on base of basitarsus, orange tuft near inner tibial spur. Metasoma: apical hair bands on T1-T5 white with orange tinge and blue-green iridescence; T6 white on apical margin, remaining hair black when viewed from behind, brown when viewed from side; S2-S5 medially dark, laterally with white patches; s6 dark and few robust white hairs laterally. Punctation. Head: clypeus punctures 1.5-3.0 puncture widths apart; labrum: with small, shallow punctures 0.1-1.5 puncture widths apart. Thorax: scutum shiny, with close small, shallow punctures, 0.2-1.5 puncture widths apart. Abdomen: T1-T5 somewhat shiny, with open, shallow punctures, 0.8-2.0 puncture widths apart.

Variation.

Variation in the colour of the tergal bands caused by fading of the colour and varying amounts of orange can complicate identification, but no other significant variation was observed. Only two specimens had scutal hair with a grey appearance.

Phenology.

Distribution.

In the subtropics and tropics along the east coast of Queensland (Fig. 13), also found in southern Papua New Guinea.

Remarks.

Closely related to the allopatric species walkeri , but easily distinguished by the brown scutal hair in both sexes. Similar to Amegilla asserta and Amegilla indistincta , but females distinguished by the length of the hind basitibial streak. Males may be distinguished from those of asserta by the absence of a hair patch on S5 and from indistincta by the colour of the tergal hair bands and the shape of S7 (Fig. 48).