Euglossa solangeae Nemesio, sp. n.
Creators: name: Nemésio, André
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2007
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Apidae
Euglossa
Euglossa solangeae

description: Euglossa solangeae Nemésio sp. n.
Diagnosis (male characters). This species can be distinguished from other Euglossa species by the following character combination: anterior tuft of mesotibia entire, subtriangular, and, at most, of same size as posterior tuft; hairs of anterior mid-tibial tuft longer and paler than those of posterior tuft (Figure 2 C and 2E); mid basitarsus with internal keel; metatibia triangular (Figure 2 D); punctation of T5 and T6 dense, punctures circular and small (Figure 2 G); two mandibular teeth; sternal tufts small and widely separated; extended tongue in repose reaching the apex of the metasoma (Figure 2A); complete ivory paraocular markings (Figure 2 B). This species is very similar to both E. stellfeldi and E. annectans. It can be readily distinguished from E. stellfeldi due to its dark blue to violet clypeus and due to the shape and size of the mid-tibial tufts (in E. stellfeldi the anterior tuft is larger than the posterior one and this latter tuft is oval—see Dressler 1982a). Euglossa annectans and E. solangeae sp. n. share a blue clypeus, but the anterior mid-tibial tuft is much larger than the posterior one and is oval in shape in E. annectans (Figure 2 F). Punctation of T5 and T6 is also quite different in both species: in E. solangeae sp. n. punctures are small and rounded on both T5 and T6 (Figure 2 G); in E. annectans they are medium-sized and hexagonal on T5 and larger and elongate on T6 (Figure 2 H).
Male
Color and vestiture. Uniformly greenish-blue (Figure 2A); clypeus dark blue (Figure 2 B). Wings pale brown. Pubescence very sparse, black and fulvous hairs evenly distributed on mesosoma; predominantly fulvous hairs on rest of body. Ivory paraocular markings well developed, reaching malar area; anterior surface of antennal scape with white stripe occupying almost all its length (Figure 2 B).
Head. Width 5.0 mm; interorbital distance at level of antennal sockets 2.8 mm; maximum interorbital distance 3.0 mm; scape 0.9 mm; eye length 3.3 mm; mandible with two teeth.
Body. Body length ca. 13.5 mm; anterior wing ca. 9.7 mm; tongue in repose reaching apex of metasoma; scutellum 3.3 mm wide and 1.2 mm long; abdominal width 5.2 mm.
Legs. Foretibia and forebasitarsus fringed with long, dense, fulvous and black hairs; velvet area covering ventral side of mesotibia, posterior and anterior mid-tibial tufts approximately same size, posterior one trapezoid, anterior one subtriangular (Figures 2 C and 2E), hairs of anterior mid-tibial tuft longer and paler than those of posterior tuft; mid basitarsus with an internal keel; metatibia triangular, acute, post-glandular area fringed with long fulvous hairs (0.93 mm) (Figure 2 D).
Metasoma. Punctation on discal base of T1 sparse, with large, rounded punctures; on distal part of T1 and T2-T6 dense, composed of small and rounded punctures; on T7 dense, with large, elongated punctures (Figure 2 G); S2 with small, widely separated tufts.
Female. Similar to male, with the following differences: tongue longer, exceeding apex of metasoma; mandible with three teeth; clypeus violet, head violet, top of head and clypeus with black hairs, antennal sockets with fulvous hairs, scape entirely dark, with no white markings, paraocular markings lacking; legs violet with fulvous hairs; metasoma violet with black hairs above and fulvous hairs laterally, hair tuft of scutellum measuring 1.00 x 0.65 mm; mesosoma dark violet with green hues laterally, T6 bright green apically; sterna bluish-green with a broad longitudinal band dark violet. [Description based on the female (Allotype) with the following label data: “ Ilha do Cardoso, SP, Brasil, 25/IX/2005, S. C. Augusto” and “12327-36331” (UFMG)]
Etymology. The species epithet honours Dr. Solange Cristina Augusto, who has long studied orchid bees and made a large number of specimens available to me. Among them, the new species Euglossa jacquelynae and Euglossa solangeae.
Type locality. Holotype collected at Ilha do Cardoso (25º03 05”– 25º18’18”S, 47º53’48”–48º05’42”), municipality of Cananéia, state of São Paulo, southeastern Brazil. Holotype and paratypes collected while visiting flowers of Quesnelia arvensis (Vellozo) Mez. (Bromeliaceae).
Type material. HOLOTYPE: male, with the following data: “ Ilha do Cardoso, SP, Brasil, 25/IX/2005, S. C. Augusto” and “12327-36332” (UFMG). PARATYPES: five females with the following data: “ Ilha do Cardoso, SP, Brasil, 25/IX/2005, S. C. Augusto” and “12327-36331” (UFMG); “ Ilha do Cardoso, SP, Brasil, 25/ IX/2005, S. C. Augusto” and “ Quesnelia arvensis (Bromeliaceae) ” (UFU); idem (UFU); “Est.[ação] E.[cológica] Juréia, 9/IX/1989, Pombal, E. C. & Pombal Jr., J. P.” (FFCLRP); “Praia Domingos Dias, Ubatuba, São Paulo, 19.ii.1997, M. Sazima” (FFCLRP); twelve males, with the following data: “Cananéia, SP, Brasil, 03/10/[20]04, S. C. Augusto” and “12326-36329” (UFMG); idem and “12326-36330” (UFPR); “ Ilha do Cardoso, SP, Brasil, 25/IX/2005, S. C. Augusto” and “12327-36333” (UFMG); idem and “12327- 36334” (UFMG); idem and “12327-36335” (UKansas); idem and “12327-36336” (UFBA); idem and “12327- 36337” (INPA); idem and “12327-36338” (ZSM); “ Ilha do Cardoso, SP, Brasil, 25/IX/2005, S. C. Augusto” and “ Quesnelia arvensis (Bromeliaceae) ” (UFU); “Est.[ação] E.[cológica] Juréia, 9/IX/1989, Pombal, E. C. & Pombal Jr., J. P.” and “ Euglossa (Euglossella) carinilabris Dressler, 1982, Det. Oliveira, 1997” (FFCLRP); idem and idem (FFCLRP); “Praia Domingos Dias, Ubatuba, São Paulo, 19.ii.1997, M. Sazima” and “ Euglossa (Euglossella) carinilabris Dressler, 1982, Det. Oliveira, 1997” (FFCLRP); “ Brasil: SP: S.[ão] Sebastião, P. Cambury, i.1989, C.R.F. Brandão col.” (USP).
Remarks. Dressler (1978) tentatively included E. stellfeldi in subgenus Glossura Cockerell (as E. stellfeldi species group). Roubik (2004: 252) re-arranged Glossura and excluded E. annectans and E. stellfeldi from it, since in these species “the tongue length in repose barely reaches the tip of body and sternal openings with cowls are absent”. Currently, this species group is not assigned to any named subgenus. Euglossa solangeae sp. n. is easily assigned to the E. stellfeldi species group and seems to be closely related to both E. annectans and E. stellfeldi. I agree with Dressler (1982a), Rebêlo & Moure (1995) and Roubik (2004) that the relationship of this group to the rest of Euglossa is not clear. Males share the following characters with members of Glossura: anterior tuft of the mesotibia entire; mid basitarsus with an internal keel; metatibia triangular; two mandibular teeth. On the other hand, sternal tufts are small and widely separated, a character shared with all groups of the subgenus Euglossa s. str. (see Dressler 1978, 1982b). The length of the extended tongue in repose (reaching the distal tip of the body) is intermediate: in Glossura the tongue is longer than the body; in Euglossa it is always shorter than body. This combination of characters, however, does not constitute a pool of distinctive features (synapomorphies) which could justify the designation of a new supraspecific grouping to accommodate these three species. Only future comprehensive phylogenetic analyses can determine the exact position of this species group within the genus Euglossa, and thus it is now considered as incertae sedis.
Another species similar to E. solangeae sp. n. is E. carinilabris Dressler. This species, however, is golden green, has a green clypeus, and has only been recorded in Bahia state, northeastern Brazil. I have studied many collections of orchid bees from Espírito Santo and Rio de Janeiro states (representing> 10,000 specimens) and no E. carinilabris specimen was ever seen in these locations that are between southern Bahia and northern São Paulo state, the northernmost limit of E. solangeae sp. n. Although not included in E. stellfeldi group when first described, I believe E. carinilabris is the fourth member of this group.
description: Published as part of Nemésio, André, 2007, Three new species of Euglossa Latreille (Hymenoptera: Apidae) from Brazil, pp. 21-31 in Zootaxa 1547 on pages 25-27, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.273883