Mesoplia (Mesoplia) aff. rufipes (Perty)

Genaro, Julio A. & Franz, Nico M., 2008, The bees of Greater Puerto Rico (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila), Insecta Mundi 2008 (40), pp. 1-24 : 14

Mesoplia (Mesoplia) aff. rufipes (Perty) ( Fig. 27 )

Crocisa rufipes Perty, 1833: 149 . Male holotype in ZSM.

GD: British Virgin Islands (Guana Island), Greater and Lesser Antilles, Mexico to Brazil ( Moure 1960b; Snelling 1994).

The taxonomy of species placed in the genus Mesoplia Lepeletier is in an unsatisfactory state, hampered by inaccurate information on distributions and unresolved problems of synonymy. The usage of names for Antillean species is therefore compromised. Snelling and Brooks (1985) reviewed the genera of cleptoparasitic bees in the tribe Ericrocidini (misspelled as Ericrocini by these authors: refer to Engel 2005), including the genus Mesoplia , however that work did not extend to the species level. Moure (1960b) studied the holotype of M. rufipes , commenting on issues of synonymy, and established three species groups within the genus. He placed M. rufipes and M. azurea (Lepeletier and Serville, 1828) in the same group. Several authors have treated M. rufipes and M. azurea as synonyms without providing additional comments (i.e.; Cresson 1865; Gundlach 1886; Dalla Torre 1896; Friese 1902; Ducke 1912). According to G. Melo (personal communication, 2007), M. rufipes is restricted to the continental mainland; a revision of the species is in preparation and will clarify the proper names and distributions of the Antillean species, not clarified in Moure et al. (2007).

Figures

Figure 16-29. Apidae. 16) Anthophora tricolor (Fabr.). 17) Centris smithii Cresson. 18) C. decolorata Lepeletier. 19) C. lanipes (Fabr.). 20) C. haemorrhoidalis (Fabr.). 21) Exomalopsis analis Spinola. 22) Exomalopsis bahamica Timberlake. 23) Melissodes trifasciata Cresson. 24) Nomada pilipes (Cresson). 25) N. krugii Cresson. 26) Xeromelecta tibialis (Fabr.). 27) Mesoplia rufipes (Perty). 28-29) Xylocopa mordax F. Smith.