Andrena (Aciandrena) obtusa Pisanty, 2022

Pisanty, Gideon, Scheuchl, Erwin, Martin, Teresa, Cardinal, Sophie & Wood, Thomas James, 2022, Twenty-five new species of mining bees (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae: Andrena) from Israel and the Levant, Zootaxa 5185 (1), pp. 1-109 : 20-23

Andrena (Aciandrena) obtusa Pisanty sp. nov.

( Figs. 27–35 )

Female ( Fig. 27 ).

Body length: 6–6.5 mm.

Colour. Head and mesosoma dark brown to black ( Fig. 27 ). Anterior side of flagellomeres 4–10 orange ( Fig. 27–28 ). Legs brown to black, apical tarsomeres light brown. Wings slightly infuscate, veins brown, stigma golden, often partly translucent medially ( Fig. 27 ). Tergal discs brown. Tergal marginal zones reddish-orange basally, white apically ( Fig. 30 ).

Pubescence. Body hair mostly sparse, short, minutely plumose, white to yellowish-white ( Fig. 27 ). Head and mesosoma mostly with white hair ventrally and yellowish hair dorsally ( Fig. 27 ). Clypeus with sparse short white hair. Paraocular area and area around antennal sockets with dense short white hair ( Fig. 28 ). Facial foveae dark in ventral view, white to brownish-white in dorsal view ( Fig. 29 ). Vertex with white to golden, medium-lengthed hair. Genal area with short yellowish hair dorsally, medium white hair ventrally. Mesonotum and scutellum with short brownish-white hairs, relatively sparse and thin medially, dense and thick peripherally ( Fig. 29 ). Mesepisternum with long white hair. Propodeal corbicula incomplete, dorsoposterior fringe with long white plumose hair, corbicular surface with few long, white simple hairs. Femora and tibiae with mostly short white hair, tarsi with short white to golden hair; scopal hairs simple, white; flocculus incomplete, white ( Fig. 27 ). Tergal discs with short white hair laterally; medially, 1–2 with extremely sparse and minute inconspicuous hair; 3–4 with sparse short white hair; 5 with relatively long white hair, merging into prepygidial fimbria. Tergal marginal zones 2–4 with dense bands of white hair covering bases of following tergal discs, interrupted in 2–3, continuous in 4. Prepygidial fimbria white, pygidial fimbria golden ( Fig. 30 ).

Head ( Figs. 28–29 ). 1.2 times broader than long. Mandible weakly to strongly bidentate. Galea shiny, very finely shagreened except on inner basal area. Labral process trapezoidal, apex distinctly narrower than base, basal part transversely striated. Clypeus almost completely flat, shiny, weakly shagreened basolaterally, more or less smooth medioapically, sparsely, irregularly punctured, distance between punctures 1.5–3 puncture diameters ( Fig. 28 ). Flagellomere 1 longer than 2+3, 2 as long as 3. Frons longitudinally striated. Facial foveae of moderate width, tapering downwards, extending from level of middle–upper end of lateral ocellus to middle–lower end of antennal socket, about 0.6 times as broad as antennocular distance ( Fig. 28 ). Distance of fovea from lateral ocellus about 0.7 ocellus diameter. Ocelloccipital distance 1 ocellus diameter. Vertex weakly carinate, almost rounded ( Fig. 29 ).

Mesosoma ( Fig. 29 ). Pronotum without elevated dorsolateral angle or lateral carina. Mesonotum and scutellum strongly shagreened, weakly shiny, very superficially and imperceptibly punctured, distance between punctures 1–2 puncture diameters ( Fig. 29 ). Mesepisternum finely alveolate, obliquely punctured. Propodeal corbicula finely reticulate. Posterior part of propodeum finely alveolate, triangle very weakly demarcated by weak carina, sculpturing slightly coarser basally compared to flanking areas ( Fig. 29 ). Hind pretarsal claw unidentate. Recurrent vein 1 meets submarginal cell 2 near its middle. Submarginal crossvein 1 meets marginal cell 3–5 vein widths from stigma. Nervulus strongly antefurcal.

Metasoma ( Fig. 30 ). Tergal discs finely shagreened and impunctate, 1 strongly so, the following gradually more weakly shagreened and shinier. Tergal marginal zones similarly sculptured, weakly depressed, 2–4 distinctly arched, medially occupying 1/3–1/2 of tergum length. Pygidial plate without elevated medial zone.

Male ( Fig. 31 ).

Body length: 6–7 mm.

Colour. Head and mesosoma dark brown to black ( Fig. 31 ). Clypeus white except for two small mediolateral dark maculations. Paraocular area white almost up to level of clypeal base ( Fig. 32 ). Anterior side of flagellomeres 3–11 orange. Legs dark brown to black, apical tarsomeres light brown. Wings slightly infuscate, veins brown, stigma brownish-golden ( Fig. 31 ). Tergal discs dark brown to black. Tergal marginal zones reddish-orange basally, yellowish-white apically ( Fig. 33 ).

Pubescence. Body hair mostly thin, white, short to medium-lengthed, minutely plumose ( Fig. 31 ). Clypeus with dense fringe of white hairs, extending below to about half clypeus length. Paraocular area and area around antennal sockets with dense short white hair ( Fig. 32 ). Vertex with medium-lengthed white hairs medially, short white to greyish hairs laterally ( Fig. 31 ). Genal area with white hairs, short dorsally, medium ventrally. Mesonotum, scutellum and metanotum with relatively long, moderately dense, white to greyish thin hairs. Mesepisternum with long white hair. Lateral part of propodeum with fringe of long white plumose hairs. Femora and tibiae with white hair, tarsi with short white to golden hair ( Fig. 31 ). Tergal discs with thin white hair of moderate density, very short on medial part of terga 2–5, longer laterally and on tergum 1. Tergal marginal zones 2–4 with interrupted bands of dense, short white hair; 5 with continuous band of medium-lengthed, sparse white hair ( Fig. 33 ).

Head ( Fig. 32 ). 1.2 times broader than long. Labral process weakly trapezoidal, almost rectangular, apical margin emarginate. Clypeus weakly convex, almost smooth, finely punctured, distance between punctures 1–2 puncture diameters, puncture density increasing laterally, without impunctate midline ( Fig. 32 ). Supraclypeal plate not striated. Frons longitudinally striated. Flagellomere 1 slightly shorter than 2+3, 2 shorter than 3 ( Fig. 32 ). Ocelloccipital distance 1.2 ocellus diameters. Vertex carinate. Posterior margin of genal area more or less rounded, not carinate.

Mesosoma. Similar to female, except for bidentate hind pretarsal claw.

Metasoma ( Fig. 33 ). Similar to female, but a very fine tergal punctation is weakly perceptible, distance between punctures 2–3 puncture diameters. Tergal marginal zones more weakly arched than in female, usually occupying no more than 2/5 of tergal length.

Genitalia and hidden sterna ( Figs. 34–35 ). Dorsal gonocoxite lobe weakly developed, rounded. Gonostyli elongate, finger-shaped, rounded apically. Basal half of penis valves moderately broad and strongly tapering, apical half very narrow ( Fig. 34 ). Sternum 8 simple, columnar, of uniform width, apical process suddenly but slightly broadened ( Fig. 35 ).

Diagnosis. Andrena obtusa closely resembles A. (Aciandrena) varicornis Pérez , but differs in the broader facial foveae, slightly more flattened and shagreened female clypeus, ivory-coloured male clypeus (yellow in A. varicornis ), and finger-shaped, apically rounded gonostyli (hook-shaped, apically pointed in A. varicornis ).

Distribution: Southern Israel.

Flight period: February–April.

Flower records: Asteraceae : Senecio glaucus ; Brassicaceae : Erucaria microcarpa .

Holotype: ISRAEL: Shivta Junction , 30. 941°N 34.597°E, 16.iii.2020, G. Pisanty, ♂ ( SMNHTAU: 333575).

Paratypes: ISRAEL: Holot Mash’abbim Nature Reserve [Holot Mash’abbim], 30.999°N 34.7578°E, 18.ii.2022, G. Pisanty, pan traps (2♂) and sweeping (5♂); Mashabei Sadeh [Mashabe Sade], 16.ii.1976, A. Freidberg (1♀) ; [N. Negev Des’t, Mash’abbe Sade, 15 km S Be’er Sheva ], 16.iii.1989, C. O’Toole, on Senecio glaucus (1♂) ; Nahal Zin , 15.iv.2007, I. Lalzar (1♀) ; Retamim , 273 m, 31°03’N 34°41.5’E, 3.iv.2009, A. Freidberg (2♀, 2♂) ; Shivta , 17.iii.1977, A. Freidberg (1♀) ; Shivta Junction , 30.941°N 34.597°E, 6.iii.2020, G. Pisanty, partly from pan traps (2♀, 1♂) ; Tel Yeroham [Tel-Jerucham], 25.iii.1959, J. Kugler, on Erucaria microcarpa (1♂) ( OLML, RMNH, SMNHTAU, TJW) .

Etymology. obtusus = Latin for “blunt, dull, obtuse”, in reference to the gonostyli which lack points, unlike the related species A. varicornis . The species epithet is an adjective.

Figures

FIGURES 27–35. Andrena (Aciandrena) obtusa sp. nov. 27. female habitus, 28. female head, 29. female vertex and mesosoma, 30. female metasoma, 31. male habitus, 32. male head, 33. male metasoma, 34. male genitalia, 35. male eighth sternum.