Callomegachile
| Notice: | This page is derived from the original publication listed below, whose author(s) should always be credited. Further contributors may edit and improve the content of this page and, consequently, need to be credited as well (see page history). Any assessment of factual correctness requires a careful review of the original article as well as of subsequent contributions.
If you are uncertain whether your planned contribution is correct or not, we suggest that you use the associated discussion page instead of editing the page directly. This page should be cited as follows (rationale):
Citation formats to copy and paste
BibTeX: @article{Praz2017JournalofHymenopteraResearch, RIS/ Endnote: TY - JOUR Wikipedia/ Citizendium: <ref name="Praz2017Journal of Hymenoptera Research">{{Citation See also the citation download page at the journal. |
Ordo: Hymenoptera
Familia: Megachilidae
Name
Praz, 2017 – Wikispecies link – Pensoft Profile
Diagnosis and description
In the few species present in the Palearctic, the preoccipital carina is always well developed and constitutes a good diagnostic trait. Females: Females can be recognized by the mandible without cutting edges and by the dull mandibular surface with comparatively few punctures or ridges [the mandible is also dull in some Chalicodoma of the montenegrensis group, and to some extend in Megachile (Pseudomegachile) foersteri Gerstäcker, 1869 (Fig. 23)]. The clypeus is always modified in the species of Callomegachile present in the Palearctic, either broadly truncate, with truncation wide, shiny, vertical or overhanging the base of the labrum (Fig. 18). Males: Males of the species present in the Palearctic always have a front coxal tooth and a quadrate projection along the inferior margin of the mandible. In many Callomegachile (but not in M. sculpturalis Smith, 1853), the first segment of the front tarsi forms a ventral concavity. The preapical carina of T6 is entire, without denticulation. The clypeus is mostly glabrous basally and with a dense fringe of hairs apically; in most other Palearctic Megachile, the clypeus is entirely covered by hairs.
Species composition
Megachile sculpturalis, an Oriental species, has recently been introduced to western Europe (Vereecken and Barbier 2009[1], Amiet 2012[2], Quaranta et al. 2014[3], Westrich et al. 2015[4]); otherwise, only a few species of Callomegachile occur on the Arabian Peninsula, including M. simonyi Friese, 1903 and M. cephalotes Smith, 1853 among others. At least two further species occur on the Arabian Peninsula; they probably belong to previously described African species. As mentioned above, M. breviceps likely does not belong to the Palearctic fauna.
Biology
Most species of the subgenus Callomegachile investigated so far predominantly use resin to build their nests (Michener 2007[5]), although other materials (wood chips, mud or even leaf fragments) are sometimes used (Piel 1930[6]). Megachile sculpturalis nests in existing cavities in wood and uses resin to separate the cells; the nest plug is also built with resin but sometimes covered with a thin layer of mud (Quaranta et al. 2014[3], Westrich et al. 2015[4]). Whether mud is also used for the cell partitions is unclear. In contrast, M. cephalotes appears to build entire cells with mud; the cells are placed in hollow stems (Gupta et al. 2004[7]). Apparently, a “brown-colored detachable membranous layer” (Gupta et al. 2004[7]: 58) lines the inside of the mud walls, but it is unclear what this layer refers to as it exhibits a nipple-shaped projection apically, which seems to refer to the cocoon. The floral choices of the widely polylectic species M. sculpturalis have been studied using pollen analyses (Quaranta et al. 2014[3], Westrich et al. 2015[4]).
Taxon Treatment
- Praz, C; 2017: Subgeneric classification and biology of the leafcutter and dauber bees (genus Megachile Latreille) of the western Palearctic (Hymenoptera, Apoidea, Megachilidae) Journal of Hymenoptera Research, (55): 1-54. doi
Images
|
Other References
- ↑ Vereecken N, Barbier E (2009) Premières données sur la présence de l’abeille asiatique Megachile (Callomegachile) sculpturalis SMITH (Hymenoptera, Megachilidae) en Europe. Osmia 3: 4–6. Available at: http://oabeilles.net/wordpress/osmia/osmia-numeros-entiers.
- ↑ Amiet F (2012) Die Blattschneiderbiene Megachile sculpturalis Smith, 1853 (Hymenoptera, Apidae) nun auch in der Schweiz. Entomo Helvetica 5: 157–159.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Quaranta M, Sommaruga A, Balzarini P, Felicioli A (2014) A new species for the bee fauna of Italy: Megachile sculpturalis continues its colonization of Europe. Bulletin of Insectology 67: 287–293.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Westrich P, Knapp A, Berney I (2015) Megachile sculpturalis Smith 1853 (Hymenoptera, Apidae), a new species for the bee fauna of Germany, now north of the Alps. Eucera 9: 3–10. Available at: http://www.wildbienen.info/eucera/index.php
- ↑ Michener C (2007) The Bees of the World, second edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, Maryland, 953 pp.
- ↑ Piel O (1930) Nidification de Megachile monticola Smith, chez Xylocopa rufipes Sm. f, pictifrons Sm. m. Notes d’Entomologie Chinoise 5: 1–8.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Gupta R, Naval R, Charan S, Rajpurohit A (2004) Nesting biology of Megachile (Callomegachile) cephalotes Smith, a solitary bee that nests in castor sticks (Hymenoptera, Megachilidae). Mellifera 4: 53–64.
