Palaearctic Osmia bees of the subgenus Hoplosmia (Megachilidae, Osmiini): biology, taxonomy and key to species
Author
Müller, Andreas
text
Zootaxa
2018
2018-04-30
4415
2
297
329
journal article
30150
10.11646/zootaxa.4415.2.4
4880ad2b-42d6-419d-b115-ecd2f777eea5
1175-5326
1241994
12025774-DB2C-436F-A06C-1A8F9A2B2361
Osmia
(
Hoplosmia
)
fallax
Pérez 1895
Osmia fallax
Pérez 1895
: 13
. Type material: Lectotype ♂, by designation of
Tkalců (1974a)
, “Andalusia” (Spain), Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle Paris.
Literature records.
SPAIN
:
Granada
: Sierra Elvira (
Moreno-Rueda
et al
. 2008
); Malaga (
Tkalců 1974a
); Barcelona,
Cataluña
(Ceballos 1956).
New records.
SPAIN
:
Valencia
: Almenara la Llosa,
12 km
N Sagunt,
27.4.2001
(leg. E. Scheuchl);
80 km
SW
Valencia
, Muela de Cortes reserv.,
14.5.2003
(leg. M. Halada);
Alicante
: Xixona,
1.5.2000
(leg. E. Scheuchl); Coll de Rates, between Callosa d’en Sarria and Parcent,
520 m
,
3.5.2000
(leg. E. Scheuchl);
Murcia
: Alahama de
Murcia
, Monte Muela,
29.4.2000
(leg. E. Scheuchl); Pto. de Jumilla,
800 m
,
19.5.2003
(leg. M. Halada);
25 km
SW Cartagena,
19.5.2003
(leg. M. Halada);
Almeria
:
50 km
W
Almeria, Berja
,
21.4.2003
(leg. M. Halada);
Granada
: Polopos,
5.5.1997
(leg. M. Halada).
MOROCCO
:
Fès-Meknès
: Ifrane,
15.6.1962
(leg. W. Schläfle); Ifkern,
25 km
E Boulemane, 24–
25.5.1995
(leg. M. Halada); Ifrane,
1680 m
,
10.6.1996
(leg. P. Rasmont);
TUNISIA
:
Kasserine
:
10 km
NNW Thelepte,
24.3.2001
(leg. C. Saure).
Distribution.
Western and southern
Spain
, Maghreb (
Morocco
,
Tunisia
).
Pollen hosts.
Polylectic with a strong preference for
Cistaceae
(e.g.
Helianthemum
), additional pollen sources include
Brassicaceae
,
Asteraceae
(
Asteroideae
,
Cichorioideae
),
Echium
(Boraginaceae)
and
Lamiaceae
(based on 13 pollen loads from six different localities in
Spain
and
Morocco
). Pollen of
Cistaceae
constituted 93.6% of the total pollen grain volume and was recorded in all pollen loads, seven of which were pure
Cistaceae
pollen loads, indicating a very high importance of the flowers of
Cistaceae
as host plants. Interestingly, the scopal hairs of
O
.
fallax
are straight and apically spatulate rather than wavy and apically button-like as in all the other
O.
(
Hoplosmia
) species, which are most probably all specialized on
Asteraceae
. This deviating scopal hair shape might be an adaptation to the need of transporting pollen of different sizes and morphologies or might reflect the relaxed selection for wavy hairs to uptake or transport
Asteraceae
pollen. Furthermore, in both sexes of
O
.
fallax
the first and the second segment of the labial palpus are of roughly the same length, which is in sharp contrast to all the other
O
. (
Hoplosmia
) species, where the first segment is distinctly shorter than the second. This difference might be due to different morphological requirements to suck nectar from the host plants of
O
.
fallax
and
Asteraceae
, respectively.
Nesting biology.
The nests are built in empty snail shells (e.g.
Sphincterochila candidissima
) and contain 1–4 brood cells per shell (
Moreno-Rueda
et al
. 2008
; J. Ortiz-Sanchez personal communication). In southeastern
Spain
,
O
.
fallax
and the cleptoparasitic megachilid bee species
Stelis odontopyga
Noskiewicz
were found at the same localities inhabiting empty snail shells (
Moreno-Rueda
et al
. 2008
), suggesting that
S
.
odontopyga
, which is known to develop in nests of
O
.
spinulosa
(
Noskiewicz 1925
; Blüthgen 1926), might also parasitize
O
.
fallax
.