Colletes latefasciatus Friese, 1925

Kuhlmann, Michael, 2007, Revision of the bees of the Colletes fasciatus-group in southern Africa (Hymenoptera: Colletidae), African Invertebrates 48 (2), pp. 121-166 : 153-154

Colletes latefasciatus Friese, 1925

Fig. 42

Colletes latefasciatus: Friese 1925: 524 . Type locality: South Africa, Capland .

Diagnosis: Female readily identifiable by the very broad, conspicuous, yellowish posterior tergal fringes.

Description:

Female.

Length 12–13 mm.

Vestiture: Face white to greyish white with blackish hairs intermixed on vertex; mesonotum with short, yellowish white hairs intermixed with numerous longer blackish hairs; sides of mesosomal and legs yellowish to greyish white, scutellum and metanotum with short, yellowish brown hairs, intermixed with longer blackish hairs on scutellum; scopa dark brown dorsally, yellowish brown ventrally; T1 sparsely clothed with short, erect yellowish white hairs; disc of T2 very densely hirsute, with very short, yellowish brown hairs; discs of T3–T5 with successively longer erect, blackish hairs; very broad yellow to yellowish brown posterior tergal fringes on T2–T4, distinctively narrower on T1 and T5, consisting of very short (but longer than in C. fasciatus ), dense pilosity; T2 without basal tomentum; S2 with sparse fringe of long, yellowish white hairs, shorter and less developed on S3–S4 on which hairs are longer laterally than medially, S5 clothed with long, brownish hairs.

Integument: Completely black, except tarsi sometimes slightly brownish and T1 posteriorly broadly translucent; malar area short, length about 1/2 width of mandibular base; clypeus with dense (0.2 pd), medium-sized punctures, punctures slightly elongate forming indistinct more or less U-shaped carinae on lower part of clypeus; integument between punctures glabrous; facial fovea narrow, maximum width about 3/4 antennal diameter; disc of mesonotum with dense (0.5–1 pd), coarse punctation, integument glabrous between punctures, surrounded by dense (<0.5 pd) punctation; upper sloping part of propodeal triangle with short longitudinal carinae, vertical part superficially shagreened and slightly dull; disc of T1 with distinct, fine, very dense (<0.5 pd) punctation, punctures becoming finer, more shallow and denser towards posterior tergal depression, nearly disappearing on posterior margin; disc of T2 with very fine, dense (<0.5 pd) punctation; integument between punctures glabrous.

Male. Unknown.

Type material examined: Colletes latefasciatus , ^lectotype: ‘Capland, Colletes latefasciatus 1910 Friese det., Type, Coll. Friese’ (ZMHB).

Additional material examined: 24^. SOUTH AFRICA: Northern Cape: 18^Leliefontein , 2.x.1995, F.W. & S.K. Gess, on pink Ruschia (AMGS, CMK) ; Western Cape: 2^Ysterfontein , 1.ix.1960 ( SAMC); 4^Pakhuis Pass, 7.ix.1987, C.D. Eardley ( SANC) .

Distribution: Scattered records from much of the winter rainfall area ( Fig. 42 ).

Flower visiting: Ruschia sp. (Aizoaceae) .

Phenology: First record 1 st September, last record 2 nd October.

Figures

Fig. 42. Distribution of C. inornatus, C. karooensis, C. katharinae, C. knersvlaktei, C. latefasciatus and C. laticaudus.