Epicharis (Epicharitides) lia, Villamizar & Vivallo, 2024

Villamizar, Germán & Vivallo, Felipe, 2024, Taxonomic revision of the oil-collecting bee subgenus Epicharis (Epicharitides) Moure, 1945 (Hymenoptera: Apidae), with the description of two new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 928 (1), pp. 1-61 : 22-25

Epicharis (Epicharitides) lia sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:E3F19993-F355-46AC-B382-4F807718FCB1

Figs 4 , 12

Diagnosis

Female

Pubescence dark brown to black with whitish hairs mostly on gena, area near tegula, legs and propodeum; distinct yellow maculae on face, mainly on paraocular area, labrum and dorsal surface of mandible; malar area sub-rectangular; yellow macula on most of posterior margin of mesoscutellum; lateral sides of T2–T4 with yellow maculae as irregular crescent spots; tegula and wing veins dark brown.

Male

Unknown.

Comments

This new species can be confused with E. duckei by the configuration of its maculae, mainly on the face and mesoscutellum. However, E. lia sp. nov. can be distinguished by the wings, wing veins and dark brown tegulae, the pubescence being predominantly dark brown to black and the maculae less developed on T2–T5.

Etymology

This species is dedicated to Martha Lia Romero, grandmother of the first author. The specific epithet is used as a noun in apposition.

Type material

Holotype

PERU • ♀; “ PERU: Cusco Prov., Pilcopata , Villa Carmen , Bio. Station , E. Rodriguez XII-2013 \ Epicharis sp. det. Whitehead ”; MNRJ ✝.

Description

Holotype female ( Fig. 4A–B )

MEASUREMENTS. Approximate body length: 14.3. Head width: 4.3. Mesosoma width: 5.2. Metasoma width: 5.1. Forewing length: 10.0.

COLORATION. Mostly dark brown to black with mandible, legs and lateral sides of T1 light brown. Integument reddish brown on ventral surface of flagellomeres except basal area of F1. Yellow maculae as follows: a stripe on paraocular area near margin of compound eyes from alveolar tangent to lower paraocular area, wider on lower area; a spot on apex of ventral surface of scape; a faint stripe on basal lateral margin of clypeus; on most of malar area; on basal half of labrum, deeply emarginated on medial area; on most of mandible, except apex and ventral surface; an elliptical spot on basal margin of fore tibia; an irregular spot on anterior and posterior margin of tegula respectively; an irregular stripe on posterior margin of mesoscutellum, finely interrupted medially; an irregular stripe throughout T1, interrupted in the middle; an irregular crescent spots on lateral sides of T2–T4; an irregular spot on lateral sides of T5. Tegula, wings and veins dark brown. Tarsus reddish brown.

PUBESCENCE. Largely dark brown to black with whitish hairs intermixed giving a grayish aspect on paraocular area, lateral sides of clypeus, base of mandible, apical margin of labrum, occipital area, hypoepimeral lobe and on T5. Gena, legs, metepisternum, propodeum and T1 predominantly whitish, except ferruginous on ventral surface of hind tibia and basitarsus. Yellowish hairs on dorsal surface of middle basitarsus and scopa. Ventral surface of mesosoma ferruginous. Long, decumbent, coarse and simple hairs on lateral sides of clypeus and on apex of labrum, coarser on clypeus. Lower lateral sides of clypeus, apex of labrum and base of mandible with short, dense and simple hairs (0.2–2× OD). Paraocular area and vertex with long, sparse and plumose hairs of similar length (1–2× OD), denser near alveolus and longer towards occipital area. Gena with dense and plumose hairs progressively longer from upper to lower area (0.5–4 × OD). Mesosoma with long, dense and plumose hairs (3–4 × OD), longer on posterior surface and sparser, almost glabrous on pronotum. Anterior surface of T1 with scattered plumose hairs of similar length than those on propodeum, sparser on disc. T2–T5 with appressed hairs, except on maculae, and short simple hairs (0.2–2× OD), longer on apical segments. Preapical margin of T5 with long, dense and simple hairs (1–3 × OD), with tomentose pubescence on distal margin. Long, decumbent, dense and simple hairs on laterodistal margins of S2–S5, very scattered on medial surface.

SCULPTURE SURFACE. Clypeus weakly areolate, stronger on labrum mainly on apical area and on lateral sides of clypeus. Coarse and uniform punctation on paraocular areas (1–2× puncture width), coarser towards frons. Vertex, occipital area and gena with fine and dense punctation (0.5–2 × puncture width), denser near occipital carina. Mesosoma with fine and uniform punctation (1–2 × puncture width), finer on dorsal area and coarser on metepisternum. Pronotum nearly smooth. Terga weakly imbricate, with a large impunctate area on preapical margin of T5. Coarse and sparse punctation on medial areas of S2–S5 (1–4 × puncture width), finer and denser towards distal margins.

STRUCTURES. Head broader than long (1.2: 1). Ratio of upper and lower interocular distances: 0.9: 1. Maximum interocular distance shorter than length of compound eye (0.8: 1). Clypeus broader than long (1.7: 1) with length equal to clypeocellar distance (1: 1). Labrum longer than broad (1.2: 1). Interalveolar distance longer than alveolorbital distance (2.4: 1). Interalveolar distance shorter than alveolocellar distance (0.7: 1). Lateral ocelli above the upper supraorbital tangent. Interocellar distance slightly longer than ocellocular distance (1.1: 1). Length of frontal carina: 1.7 × OD. Length of F1 longer than the length of F2 and F3 together, but shorter than length of F2–F4 (0.7: 0.6: 1). Vertex at the same level of the upper supraorbital tangent. Epistomal suture and clypeal carinae conspicuous. Mesoscutellum rounded, slightly flat in lateral view.

Type locality

PERU: Cusco: Kosñipata: Pilcopata.

Distribution ( Fig. 12 )

Only known from the type locality.

Comments

As mentioned in the “Material and methods” section, the holotype of this species was lost in the fire that destroyed the Museu Nacional. However, the morphological description presented here was made before the fire. This case is particularly more complex because this new species is only known from the specimen that was destroyed.

The single known specimen of this new species was collected in the foothills of the Peruvian Andes, in the Biological Station of Villa del Carmen, approximately 550 m. a.s.l. This locality is characterized by the confluence between the Andean cloud and the low Amazon forests, being of great interest due the presence of the gradient of several habitats. More specimens of Epicharis lia sp. nov. need to be collected to determine the morphological variation of this species, as well as to describe the unknown male and to determine its distributional range.

Figures

Fig. 4. Epicharis (Epicharitides) lia sp. nov., holotype, ♀ (Peru: Pilcopata; MNRJ). A. Head, frontal view. B. Habitus, lateral view. Scale bars: A = 1 mm; B = 5 mm.

Fig. 12. Distribution records for E. lia sp. nov., E. mesoamericana sp. nov. and E. rufescens Moure & Seabra, 1959.