Revision of the taxonomic status of Rhodanthidium sticticum ordonezi (Dusmet, 1915), an anthidiine bee endemic to Morocco (Apoidea: Anthidiini)

Max Kasparek,Patrick Lhomme

doi:10.3906/zoo-1809-22

Abstract

Rhodanthidium ordonezi (Dusmet, 1815) is recognized here as a valid species endemic to central and southern Morocco. It has previously been regarded as a subspecies of R. sticticum (Fabricius). The two taxa are in allopatry throughout most of their respective ranges, but probably cooccur in the Middle Atlas Mountains. They are clearly distinguished by their coloration and some aspects of their color patterns. Structural differences are minor, but a multivariate discriminant function analysis of 11 morphometric traits has showed that these are sufficient to assign 82.7% of all specimens correctly. While R. ordonezi has a restricted range in central and southern Morocco (extending over approximately 500 km), R. sticticum is widely distributed in the Mediterranean basin with a range extending over approximately 2500 km from east to west. The distribution areas of these two species are contiguous in the same ecozone of the Middle Atlas mountain range, but sympatric occurrence or a transition zone where intermediate specimens occur is not known.

Highlights

In 1915, José María Dusmet y Alonso described the bee Anthidium ordonezi from the town of Mogador, today’s Essaouira, on the Atlantic coast of Morocco (Dusmet, 1915). Pasteels (1969) classified this taxon as a subspecies of Rhodanthidium sticticum (Fabricius, 1787) (“sticticum F.”)
Ordonezi was accepted as a subspecies of sticticum, either as Anthidium sticticum ordonezi or as Rhodanthidium sticticum ordonezi (e.g., Ornosa et al, 2008; Kuhlmann, 2016; http://westpalbees. myspecies.info), including in online databases such as Encyclopedia of Life, BioLib.cz, DiscoverLife, and the Integrated Taxonomic Information System by Ruggiero et al (2018)
The differences between R. sticticum and R. ordonezi are both in structure and coloration; the most relevant differences can be summarized as follows: maculation of head and metasoma is red in R. sticticum and yellow in R. ordonezi

Summary

Introduction

In 1915, José María Dusmet y Alonso described the bee Anthidium ordonezi from the town of Mogador, today’s Essaouira, on the Atlantic coast of Morocco (Dusmet, 1915). Pasteels (1969) classified this taxon as a subspecies of Rhodanthidium sticticum (Fabricius, 1787) (“sticticum F. (ordonezi Dusmet)”). In 1915, José María Dusmet y Alonso described the bee Anthidium ordonezi from the town of Mogador, today’s Essaouira, on the Atlantic coast of Morocco (Dusmet, 1915). In his overview of the bees of the tribe Anthidiini of the Western Palearctic, Warncke (1980) accepted this assignment, but did not recognize Pasteel’s generic classification. Ordonezi was accepted as a subspecies of sticticum, either as Anthidium sticticum ordonezi or as Rhodanthidium sticticum ordonezi Myspecies.info), including in online databases such as Encyclopedia of Life (http://eol.org), BioLib.cz Biolib.cz), DiscoverLife (www.discoverlife.org), and the Integrated Taxonomic Information System In the course of a review and revision of the tribe Anthidiini (Kasparek, 2015; 2017; in press), we examined material of these two taxa and can hereby revise their taxonomic status

Methods

Results

Conclusion