Anthidium undulatum Dours 1873
Creators: name: Kasparek, Max
name: Boustani, Mira
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Megachilidae
Anthidium
Anthidium undulatum

description: Anthidium undulatum Dours, 1873
Figures 6, 7, 8
Anthidium littorale Morawitz, 1874 (Azerbaijan). – Published in volume 10, 1873 of the Horae Societatis Entomologicae Rossicae. Ebmer (2021) found that this volume was distributed in 1874, so that the name A. undulatum, published in 1873, has priority and A. littorale has to be treated as a nomen oblitum.
Proanthidium undulatum holozonicum Mavromoustakis, 1939 (Cyprus). Syn. nov. – Mavromoustakis (1939) was not entirely clear about the deposition of the type specimen, but by analogy with his other material, it can be assumed that he placed it in his own collection. However, it is not listed in the collection inventory (MoA, 1989). The analysis presented here is based on Mavromoustakis’ published description.
Anthidium undulatum holozonicum (Mavromoustakis, 1939).
Anthidium undulatum creticum Tkalců, 2003 (Crete). – Recognised here as valid subspecies. Paratypes examined (CMK). Further examination is required to confirm this taxonomic status.
Barcode Index Number.
BOLD: AEH 3110.
Material.
Here only material with genetic barcodes: 1 ♂, Croatia: Karlobag Velebit (44.52°N 15.12°E); 05. vii. 2018; H. Wiesbauer leg. (hw 029: ABABX 056-20; coll. H. Wiesbauer). – 1 ♀, 1 ♂ Türkiye: Muğla prov.: Akyaka, Yeşilova (37.05°N 28.42°E), 70 m; 12. vi. 2014; M. Kasparek leg. (mk 500: ABABX 099-20; mk 511: ABABX 129-20; CMK). – 1 ♂, Türkiye: Muğla prov.: Kavaklıdere, television tower (37°20′N 28°22′E), 1600 m; 13. vii. 2017; M. Kasparek & O. Özgül leg. (mk 508: ABABX 100-20; CMK). – 1 ♂, Türkiye: Konaklı 10 km W Alanya (36.58°N 31.89°E), 130 m; 01. viii. 2009; C. Schmid-Egger leg. (seg 153: ABABX 558-22; coll. C. Schmid-Egger). – 1 ♂, Cyprus: Pomos (35.16°N 32.57°E), 800 m; 14. v. 2014; M. Kafka leg. (ms 3573: ABABX 101-20; CMK). – 1 ♂, Iran: Lorestan prov.: 10 km SW Dorud (33°27′N 49°05′E), 1520 m; 27. v. 2014; J. Halada leg. (ms 3567: ABABX 273-21; CMK). – For further material, see under “ Material ” (for literature data, see above; for material examined, see Table S 1).
Diagnosis.
Antennal scape black in both sexes, contrasting to the reddish-brown inner flagellomeres (as in A. libanicum; scape reddish brown in A. wahrmani). Typical females with two black, longish maculae on the clypeus next to the middle (rarely absent, and then similar to A. libanicum and A. wahrmani); apical margin of clypeus black (rarely light brown as in the other two species); yellow preoccipital band narrow, reaching in typical specimens upper third of eye (rarely reaching lower third of eye or reduced to longitudinal spot behind the eye); gena entirely yellow in A. libanicum and A. wahrmani. Males on average larger than A. libanicum, but of similar size as A. wahrmani (average radial cell length of barcoded males: 1.83 mm as compared to 1.87 in A. wahrmani and 1.60 in A. libanicum [an exceptionally large animal not included in the average]). Antennal scape as in female; in both sexes, the yellow anterolateral band on scutum is narrower than in A. libanicum and A. wahrmani. Yellow tergal bands mostly interrupted on T 1 and contiguous on subsequent terga.
Characters such as shape of S 6 and the hidden S 8, male genitalia, tergal punctation, etc., did not prove to be diagnostic in distinguishing the other members of the A. undulatum group.
Variation.
In addition to these “ dark ” individuals, a light morph was found in Iran. All yellow maculae are broader than in the dark morph, the ground color of the metasoma is dark reddish-brown (not black) and the underside of the scape is yellow (not black). The taxonomic identity of this individual was confirmed by barcoding.
The yellow coloration increases from the north towards the south. While the combination of these character traits characterizes A. undulatum, an unambiguous identification is not always possible in southern populations, especially in south-eastern Türkiye and Syria, where the occurrence seems to overlap with A. wahrmani, which has a similarly rich yellow color pattern.
Two females from Crete have an almost black clypeus, a black lower margin of the lower paraocular area, the preoccipital band reduced to four small yellow spots, and the anterolateral yellow band and the yellow band on the scutum and the axillar reduced to small remnants.
Taxonomy.
Warncke (1980) raised the question of whether the subspecies holozonicum described from Cyprus should be recognized as distinct taxonomic entity. Members of that subspecies are, he stated, a little more yellowish than nominate specimens, but the differences are not as strong as between the nominate subspecies and the Levantine subspecies wahrmani, and examination of more material would be required to clarify the taxonomic status. Here, our DNA and morphometric data revealed that material from Croatia, Cyprus, Iran, and Türkiye belongs to the same clade and shows very little variation. These populations should be regarded as conspecific with nominate undulatum. On the other hand, wahrmani with rich dark yellow color should in fact be recognized as a distinct species.
Examination of three male paratypes of A. undulatum creticum and two female and one male non-paratypes from Crete (Tkalců 2003, material now in CMK) could not confirm the distinctiveness of the characters described by Tkalců (2003) when compared to nominate undulatum. The punctation on T 4, T 5 (female) and coloration of hind legs (both sexes) are not diagnostic for this taxon, as shown in a comparison with various mainland material. However, the black maculation on the clypeus in the female is more extended than in any other female examined from across the distribution area. Also, the yellow preoccipital band, the yellow anterolateral band on the scutum, and the yellow coloration on scutellum and axillae are present only as remnants. A DNA barcode sequence could not be retrieved from the two specimens examined, and material was not sufficient for a morphometric analysis. It is suggested to maintain the subspecies status until further clarification.
The phenotypic character traits of A. u. holozonicum Mavromoustakis, 1939 from Cyprus were found to be within the range of the nominate material, and the DNA barcoding sequence concurs with nominate material (Fig. 3). This subspecies is suggested as a junior synonym of the nominate subspecies (Anthidium undulatum holozonicum Mavromoustakis, 1939 syn. nov.).
Distribution.
Widely distributed from southern France across the Adriatic Balkan coast, Greece and Bulgaria, to Türkiye and further to the Caspian coast and Iran. Distribution in south-eastern Türkiye and northern Syria remains ambiguous due to unclear taxonomic status. On Mediterranean islands, the distribution includes Cyprus, while the taxonomic status on Crete needs clarification (distinct subspecies or species?) (Fig. 2).
description: Published as part of Kasparek, Max & Boustani, Mira, 2025, Genetic and multivariate morphometric analyses unveil cryptic diversity in sympatric populations of the Mediterranean wool carder bee, identified as Anthidium undulatum Dours, 1873 (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae: Anthidiini), pp. 75-92 in Arthropod Systematics & Phylogeny 83 on pages 75-92, DOI: 10.3897/asp.83.e137570