Revision of the leachella group of Megachile subgenus Eutricharaea in the Western Palaearctic (Hymenoptera, Apoidea, Megachilidae): A renewed plea for DNA barcoding type material Author Praz, Christophe J. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2649-3141 University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland & InfoFauna - Swiss Zoological Records Center, Neuchatel, Switzerland christophe.praz@unine.ch Author Benon, Dimitri University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland text Journal of Hymenoptera Research 2023 2023-02-17 95 143 198 http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/jhr.95.96796 journal article http://dx.doi.org/10.3897/jhr.95.96796 1314-2607-95-143 0AD4F90A9A41492D84C3C0AA1B8C275B DE2EC0A557FC5F3D9AD2D4435824AA7B Megachile leachella leachella Curtis, 1928 Megachile leachella Curtis, 1828: [explanation to Plate 218], [sex not indicated], "[England]" . Megachile dorsalis Pérez 1879: 223, ♀ nec ♂, "Bordeaux; environs de l'etang de Cazaux; Arcachon; Royan [France]". Lectotype ♀, by designation of van der Zanden (1996 : 886) (MNHN). Megachile bioculata Perez , 1902: 119, ♀ [erroneously indicated as ♂], "Catalogne [Spain: Catalonia]". Lectotype ♀, by present designation (see below) (MNHN). Megachile argentata var. fossoria Ferton, 1909: 550, [sex not indicated], "Propriano [France, Corsica]". Lectotype ♀, by designation of Schwarz & Gusenleitner (2011: 258) (MNHN); paralectotypes ♀ ♂ (MNHN). Megachile ichnusae Rebmann, 1968: 31, ♂ nec ♀, "Sardinien, Siniscola" [Italy, Sardinia, approx. 40.58 N, 9.70 E]. Holotype ♂, (SMFD). New synonymy. Megachile discriminata Rebmann, 1968: 34, ♂, "Turkestan, 189., Golodnaja Step. [Uzbekistan]". Holotype ♂ (ZMHB); paratype ♂ (SMFD). New synonymy. Megachile leachella maadiensis van der Zanden, 1986: 67, ♂, "[no locality given: Egypt]". Details on type material or type locality not given. Material examined. Type material. Lectotype ♀ (MNHN) of M. dorsalis (see also Gogala 1998 ; Schwarz and Gusenleitner 2011 ). Lectotype ♀ (MNHN) of M. bioculata , a female specimen labeled as follows: 1. [red, circular disc]; 2. "Barcelone" [handwritten, handwriting of Perez ]; 3. " Megachile bioculata JP" [handwritten, handwriting probably of Perez ]; 4. "Museum Paris Coll. J. Perez 1915" [printed]; 5. Lectotype Megachile bioculata Perez des. C. Praz 2022" [printed and handwritten on red paper]. 6. MNHN Perez EY2292 [catalogue of type MNHN]. 7. Megachile leachella det. C. Praz 2022 [printed and handwritten]. Lectotype ♀ (MNHN) of M. argentata var. fossoria (see also Schwarz and Gusenleitner 2011 ). Holotype ♂ (SMFD) of M. ichnusae (SMFD). The female paratype is a female of M. fertoni . Holotype ♂ (ZMHB) and paratype ♂ (SMFD) of M. discriminata . Other material. 174 specimens from the following countries: Croatia, Egypt, UK, France, Greece, Iran, Israel , Italy , Kyrgyzstan, Montenegro, North Macedonia , Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Syria, Turkey, Uzbekistan (Suppl. material 1) . Distribution. Widely distributed in Europe from Portugal, Spain, France, north to the UK, Scandinavia, northern, central, southern and eastern Europe, Levant (Turkey, Lebanon, Egypt, Israel), Iran, central Asia. We have examined specimens of the nominal subspecies from Chios, Lesvos, Rhodos and Santorini, but from no other Aegean Islands (see above for the populations of Crete and Cyprus). Highly similar (>98% similarity) DNA barcodes from unidentified specimens from the Beijing Region (Genbank accession number KC560312; Chesters et al. 2013 ) strongly suggests the presence of this species in China. Geographic variation. See above (species delimitation).