A new species of Ceratina (Ceratinula) Moure, 1941, with notes on the taxonomy and distribution of Ceratina (Ceratinula) manni Cockerell, 1912, and an identification key for species of this subgenus known from Brazil (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Ceratinini).

Favízia Freitas De Oliveira,Heber Luiz Pereira,Claudia Quaglierini,Fernando César Vieira Zanella,Lívia Raquel De Sousa Silva,Caroline Tito Garcia,Camila Magalhães Pigozzo

doi:10.3897/zookeys.1006.57599

Abstract

A new species of the small carpenter bee, genus Ceratina (Ceratinula) Moure, from the Cerrado Biome in midwestern Brazil is described and illustrated. Ceratina (Ceratinula) fioreseana Oliveira, sp. nov. is easily distinguished from its congeners by the size of the facial maculations and the honey-yellow color of the legs and antennal scape, which distinguish it especially from Ceratina (Ceratinula) manni Cockerell, 1912, the most similar species in terms of facial maculation patterns. The geographic records of C. manni, here interpreted as endemic to the semiarid Caatinga region in northeastern Brazil, are presented, with new records for the Brazilian states of Piauí, Ceará and Bahia. A morphological description of both species is provided, including a comparison with the type specimen of C. manni from the state of Paraíba (Guarabira, formerly named Independencia). An identification key is provided for the described species of Ceratina (Ceratinula) recorded for Brazil according to Moure’s Catalogue of Neotropical Bees.

Highlights

Bees (Hymenoptera, Anthophila) are a diverse group of insects, with more than 20,000 described species and many more estimated to exist (Michener 2007; Discover Life 2020; ITIS 2020)
The redescription of the female of C. (Ceratinula) manni Cockerell, 1912 is based on all specimens studied, checking the diagnostic characters presented in the original description (Cockerell 1912) with images of the female syntype deposited in American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), which were downloaded from the Discover Life website in 2016 (Fig. 4 – the images are no longer available on the website)
As stressed by Moure (1941:78–83), the pattern of yellow maculation is extremely important for distinguishing many species of Ceratina (Ceratinula), and most species were previously described were based on differences in the locations of the yellow maculation, especially on the head and legs

Summary

Introduction

Bees (Hymenoptera, Anthophila) are a diverse group of insects, with more than 20,000 described species and many more estimated to exist (Michener 2007; Discover Life 2020; ITIS 2020). Bees have established close relationships with angiosperms during the evolution of the two groups, and the majority of species feed exclusively on floral resources, visiting and pollinating flowers (Pinheiro et al 2014). Their lifestyles range from solitary to social. Less familiar to the general public, solitary bees represent the vast majority of bee species worldwide, comprising ca. Solitary bees act as key pollinators in natural and agricultural ecosystems (Roubik 1995; Garibaldi et al 2013)

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Conclusion