Hoplitis (Hoplitis) maussi Müller 2022, spec. nov.
Creators: name: Müller, Andreas
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Megachilidae
Hoplitis
Hoplitis maussi

description: Hoplitis (Hoplitis) maussi spec. nov.
Holotype. MOROCCO: Souss-Massa: 4 km ESE Ait Baha, 30°03ʹ42ʹʹN/9°06ʹ55ʹʹW, 620 m, 12.4.2017, ♂ (leg. A. Müller). Deposited in the Entomological Collection of ETH Zurich.
Paratypes. Souss-Massa: 30 km SE Taliouine, 30°28ʹN/7°41ʹW, 17.4.1996, 1♂ (leg. M. Schwarz); 10 km SE Ait Baha, 30°02ʹN/9°05ʹW, 20.4.1996, 7♀, 6♂ (leg. J. Gusenleitner, M. Schwarz); 10 km SEE Ait Baha, 30.034N / 9.056W, 14.4.2015, 1♀ (leg. C. Schmid-Egger); 4 km ESE Ait Baha, 30°03ʹ42ʹʹN/9°06ʹ55ʹʹW, 620 m, 12.4.2017, 1♀ (leg. A. Müller); 20 km N Tafraoute, 29°53ʹ25ʹʹN/9°00ʹ25ʹʹW, 1220 m, 14.4.2017, 3♂ (leg. A. Müller); Wadi SSW Dousdem, 10 km S Tafraoute, 29°37.718ʹN/8°58.909ʹW, 1150 m, 19.4.2019, 1♀ (leg. A. Müller); Valée Tafraoute, 4 km SW Tafraoute, 29°41.802ʹN/9°00.542ʹW, 1030 m, 20.4.2019, 1♀ (leg. A. Müller); Kasbah de Tizourgane, 40 km SSE Ait Baha, 29°52.922ʹN/8°59.755ʹW, 1190 m, 22.4.2019, 1♀ (leg. A. Müller). Deposited in the Entomological Collection of ETH Zurich and the private collection of M. Schwarz (Ansfelden).
Additional records. MOROCCO: Souss-Massa: Tassademt, 50 km NE Agadir, 30°41ʹN/9°14ʹW, 19.4.1996, 1♀ (leg. M. Schwarz).
Diagnosis. Hoplitis maussi is in both sexes morphologically very similar to H. hilbera Müller from the Iberian Peninsula. The 6.5–7.5 mm long female differs by the brownish mid and hind tibial spurs (Fig. 34; yellowish in H. hilbera) and by the longer apical tip of the tibial spur of the fore leg, which is slightly longer than basally wide (Fig. 35; slightly shorter than basally wide in H. hilbera). The 6–7.5 mm long male differs by the shorter antennal segment 4, which is slightly shorter than wide (Fig. 36; distinctly longer than wide in H. hilbera) and by the shape and pilosity of the lateroapical edge of sternum 6, which is prolonged into a short tip and beset with very long whitish hairs equalling the length of tarsal segment 2 of the hind leg (Fig. 37; rounded and beset with short whitish hairs much shorter than the length of tarsal segment 2 of the hind leg in H. hilbera).
Description. FEMALE (Fig. 32): Body length 6.5–7.5 mm. Head: Head about 0.95x as long as wide. Distance between lateral ocellus and preoccipital margin 1.4–1.5x as long as ocellar diameter. Maximum width of genal area about 0.7x as long as maximum width of compound eye. Mandible three-toothed and of black colour except for dark reddish-brown apical teeth. Clypeus medially bulged and very densely punctured with only linear interspaces except for very small impunctate zone at its base and very narrow and slightly elevated longitudinal line, which is indistinct in some specimens; apical margin of clypeus with 7–9 teeth. Punctation of supraclypeal area slightly finer than that of clypeus and very dense with only linear interspaces except medioapically, where interspaces may reach diameter of one to two punctures. Pilosity of frons, supraclypeal area, paraocular area and gena whitish, rather long, moderately dense and erect to suberect, of clypeus distinctly sparser and shorter except for its apical margin, which is beset with long yellowish-white hairs distinctly surpassing clypeal margin. Proboscis of medium length; second segment of labial palpus about 0.8x as long as compound eye and about 1.6–1.7x as long as first segment. Antenna black to dark brown; antennal segment 3 about 1.5x long as wide and almost 1.75x as long as segment 4, segments 4–11 shorter than wide and segment 12 about 1.5x as long as wide. Mesosoma: Parapsidal line linear. Punctation of scutum, scutellum and mesepisternum dense with interspaces usually not exceeding diameter of half a puncture to one puncture. Basal area of propodeum shagreened. Pilosity of mesosoma whitish. Tegula brown to yellowish-brown except for black inner and anterior margin; its anterior half and inner margin densely punctured, its posterior half almost impunctate. Stigma and veins of fore wing dark brown to black. Tibial spur of fore leg apically with moderately long tip, which is slightly longer than basally wide (Fig. 35). Tibial spurs of hind leg brownish and apically curved upwards at an angle of about 30 (Fig. 34); inner spur about 0.4x as long as maximum inner length of tibia of hind leg. Pilosity of inner surface of basitarsus of hind leg yellowish-white. Metasoma: Punctation of terga 1–4 basally and laterally rather dense with interspaces rarely exceeding diameter of one puncture and medially more scattered with interspaces reaching diameter of up to two, rarely more punctures. Punctation of terga 5–6 very dense with usually only linear interspaces. Marginal zones of terga 1–4(5) with short white hair bands, which are medially interrupted in older specimens. Longest hairs on median half of tergum 1 slightly less than half as long as maximal length of lateral hair tuft. Tergum 6 covered with suberect, very short and moderately dense whitish pilosity. Sternum 6 medioapically not prolonged into distinct spine; its apical margin with moderately well developed and more or less crenulated submarginal carina, which is medially either interrupted or lower than laterally. Scopa whitish.
MALE (Fig. 33): Body length 6–7.5 mm. Head: Head 0.85–0.9x as long as wide. Distance between lateral ocellus and preoccipital margin about 1.25x as long as ocellar diameter. Maximum width of genal area 0.6–0.65x as long as maximum width of compound eye. Mandible two-toothed and of black colour except for dark reddishbrown apical teeth. Apical margin of clypeus denticulate. Face and gena including ventral side covered with rather dense and erect whitish to yellowish-white pilosity. Proboscis of medium length; second segment of labial palpus 0.7–0.8x as long as compound eye and 1.55–1.6x as long as first segment. Colour of antenna variable ranging from almost completely dark to (partly) yellowish or light brown on segments 3–12 (Fig. 36); antennal segment 3 about as long as wide and about 1.3x as long as segment 4, segments 4–12 slightly shorter than wide to almost as long as wide and segment 13 1.6–1.7x as long as wide (Fig. 36). Mesosoma: Parapsidal line linear. Punctation of scutum, scutellum and mesepisternum dense with interspaces usually not exceeding diameter of one puncture. Basal area of propodeum shagreened. Pilosity of mesosoma laterally whitish and dorsally yellowish-white. Tegula yellowish to yellowish-brown except for black inner and anterior margin; its anterior half and inner margin densely punctured, its posterior half almost impunctate. Stigma and veins of fore wing predominantly dark brown to black. Tibial spur of fore leg apically with moderately long tip, which is about as long as basally wide. Tibial spurs of hind leg yellowish to brownish and apically weakly curved upwards; inner spur about 0.35x as long as maximum inner length of tibia of hind leg. Metasoma: Punctation of terga 1–4 basally and laterally rather dense with interspaces rarely exceeding diameter of one puncture and medially more scattered with interspaces reaching diameter of up to two, rarely more punctures. Punctation of terga 5–6 very dense with interspaces not exceeding diameter of half a puncture to one puncture. Marginal zones of terga 1–4(5) with short white hair bands, which are medially interrupted in older specimens. Apical margin of tergum 6 medially more or less crenulated and laterally with distinct tooth. Tergum 7 apically usually evenly rounded, its lateral margin ventromedially with small angular projection. Apical margins of sterna 1–4 almost straight und beset with long and sparse whitish pilosity. Sterna 2–4 with sparsely punctured and medially narrowed transversal swellings. Sternum 5 basally strongly shagreened, preapically sparsely punctured with interspaces reaching diameter of up to three or four punctures and finely and densely punctured along its marginal zone (Fig. 37); its apical margin medially slightly emarginate (Fig. 37). Sternum 6 at base with pair of large translucent flaps, its lateroapical edge prolonged into short tip and beset with very long whitish hairs equalling length of tarsal segment 2 of hind leg (Fig. 37). Lateral lobes of bilobed membraneous appendage of sternum 6 roughly quadrangular in shape, slightly wider than long, laterally weakly prolonged into rounded tip and separated from each other by angle of 45–60 (Fig. 37). Gonoforceps very narrow, its apical third bent inwards and downwards and ending in obtuse apex, which is beset with very short and dense tuft of white hairs. Penis valve dorsoventrally flattened and much wider than gonoforceps, its rounded outer margin with long whitish bristles and ending in sharp apex, which barely reaches apex of gonoforceps.
Distribution. Western Souss-Massa region in southern Morocco.
Pollen hosts. Possibly mesolectic on Fabaceae and Boraginaceae (Echium) (Tab. 1).
Nesting biology. Unknown.
Etymology. The species is dedicated to the German pollen wasp expert Volker Mauss, with whom the author has made several entomological excursions to southern Morocco and the Canary Islands.
description: Published as part of Müller, Andreas, 2022, New Moroccan bee species of the tribe Osmiini (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Megachilidae), pp. 233-263 in Zootaxa 5188 (3) on pages 247-249, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5188.3.2, http://zenodo.org/record/7091557