Chapter I

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_Bees from British Guiana_

BY T. D. A. COCKERELL

BULLETIN
OF
THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

VOL. XXXVIII, ART. XX, pp. 685-690

_New York, December 21, 1918_

59.57.99(88)

#Article XX.#--BEES FROM BRITISH GUIANA

BY T. D. A. COCKERELL.

In connection with the work of the Tropical Research Station of the New York Zoological Society, conducted by Mr. William Beebe, collections of insects, including bees, were made. The present report deals with a series of bees from the Bartica District, and Mr. John Tee Van, in forwarding them, states that "almost all of these bees were procured about a clump of several species of nightshades (_Solanum_), which were flowering in thinned-out jungle." I give an artificial key, which will enable one who is not a specialist in bees to separate readily each species from the rest. It will, of course, remain necessary to compare any species with a fuller account to make sure that it is not some form unrepresented in the present collection. The types of the new species and varieties from British Guiana are deposited in The American Museum of Natural History. Species marked P. are from the Penal Settlement; those marked K. occur at Kalacoon.

The body, or some part of it, brilliant green 1.
No part of the body brilliant green 11.

1. Thorax dark, with more or less purple tints, not bright green 2.
Thorax bright or clear green, at least in part 4.

2. Small bee, less than 10 mm. long
_Augochlora callichlorura_, new species.
Large, robust bees, greatly exceeding 10 mm. 3.

3. Abdomen with the first two segments dark; tongue not extending
to end of abdomen _Eufriesia pulchra_ (Smith).
Abdomen all bright green, with brassy tints; tongue extending
backward far beyond tip of abdomen
_Euglossa brullei_ Lepeletier.

4. Hind margins of abdominal segments broadly black.
_Augochlora nigromarginata_ (Spinola).--P.
Hind margins of abdominal segments green 5.
Hind margins of abdominal segments red or whitish; very
robust bees 10.

5. Small bee, less than 10 mm. long, the clypeus with a
transverse apical ivory-colored band _Ceratina laeta_ Spinola.
Larger, very robust bees 6.

6. Tongue extending beyond abdomen posteriorly 7.
Tongue not extending beyond abdomen 8.

7. Scutellum with a patch of black tomentum
_Euglossa ignita_ Smith; female.
Scutellum without a patch of black tomentum
_Euglossa ignita_ Smith; male.

8. Robust bees, about 10 mm. long or a little over; scutellum
with, a patch of black tomentum
_Euglossa cordata_ (Linnaeus).--P.
Much larger bees, a little over 20 mm. long 9.

9. Scutellum with an obtuse median keel; posterior angles of
scutellum rounded _Exaerele smaragdina_ (Guerin).

Scutellum depressed in middle, without any keel; posterior
angles of scutellum rather prominent _Exaerele dentata_ (Linne).

10. Scutellum with a patch of light fulvous tomentum; scape red.
_Euglossa decorata ruficauda_, new variety; female--K.

Scutellum with a patch of black tomentum; scape dark, with
a pale yellow mark _Euglossa singularis_ Mocsary.--P.

Scutellum without a patch of tomentum; scape pale yellow
in front. _Euglossa decorata ruficauda_, new variety; male.

11. Very large bees, anterior wing at least 23 mm. long; integument
partly or wholly ferruginous 12.
Anterior wing less than 20 mm. long 13.

12. Abdomen with broad black bands.
_Xylocopa frontalis nitens_ (Lepeletier); male[A]--P.
Abdomen without black bands _Xylocopa fimbriala_ (Fabricius).

13. Wasp-like bee, with fusiform abdomen, reddish wings and red
legs; three complete submarginal cells, first recurrent
nervure meeting second transversocubital
_Rhathymus beebei_, new species
Otherwise formed, the abdomen broad at base 14.

14. Surface of eyes with fine short hair; first abdominal segment
red, the others black; female abdomen sharply pointed.
_Caelioxys ardescens_ Cockerell. (Hym. 6 and 138.)
Eyes not hairy; female abdomen not sharply pointed 15.

15. Anterior wings with three complete submarginal cells 16.
Anterior wings with submarginal cells incomplete or wanting;
stingless social bees 29.

16. Small bee, about 8 mm. long; wings beyond middle milky-white,
the extreme apex dusky _Tetrapedia lacteipennis_ Vachal.--P.
Larger bees; the wings not thus colored 17.

17. Abdomen clear ferruginous; large robust bees 18.
Abdomen not ferruginous; or only partly so 19.

18. Hind legs with black hair _Centris personata_ Smith; male.--P.
Hind legs with pale hair _Centris personata_ Smith; female.--P.

19. Integument with at least some bluish, purplish or greenish
tints; abdomen not banded; form very robust 20.
Integument not at all metallic (very slightly in _Eulaema
nigrita_, variety) 21.

20. Larger; anterior wing at least 17 mm. long; head and thorax
with black hair; fourth and fifth abdominal segments purple
_Eulaema nigrita_ Lepeletier.
Much smaller; cheeks densely covered with white hair; clypeus
black in female, yellow in male _Xylocopa barbata_ (Fabricius).

21. Thorax and abdomen hairy; hair of thorax yellow, with
a transverse black band, of abdomen black, with a
transverse yellow band. _Bombus incarum_ Franklin.
Not thus colored 22.

22. Clypeus with two longitudinal keels 23.
Clypeus with a single, median longitudinal keel, sharp and
extending its whole length; black bee, with black hair.
_Eulaema nigrita_ Lepeletier, variety; female.[B]
Clypeus without any distinct keels 25.

23. Scutellum with two large yellow marks.
_Epicharis maculata barticana_, new variety.--K.
Scutellum with the integument all dark 24.

24. Second abdominal segment with a yellow mark on each side.
_Epicharis affinis_ Smith.--P.
Abdomen with the integument all black
_Epicharis rustica_ (Olivier).--P.

25. Less than 12 mm. long; wings not deep fuliginous 26.
Over 18 mm. long; wings deep fuliginous 27.

26. Hair bands of abdomen broad; male with long antennae and
yellow clypeus. _Florilegus barticanus_, new species.
Hair bands of abdomen linear; integument of clypeus black.
_Melitoma fulvifrons_ (Smith).

27. Hair of mesothorax and scutellum dark brown; apical part of
abdomen with integument red _Centris fusciventris_ Mocsary.--P.
Hair of mesothorax and scutellum red 28.

28. Face with yellow markings; anterior wing about 14 mm. long.
_Centris lineolata_ Lepeletier.
Face without yellow markings; anterior wing about 20 mm. long.
_Centris atriventris_ Mocsary.--P.

29. Robust bees, not less than 9 mm. long 30.
Small, fly-like bees, not nearly 9 mm. long 32.

30. Thorax with ferruginous hair; integument of scutellum yellow.
_Melipona fasciata barticensis_ Cockerell, ined.--P.
Thorax with dorsal hair not ferruginous 31.

31. Abdomen more or less reddish, at least the first segment
dorsally pale red. _Melipona intermixta_ Cockerell, ined.--P.
Abdomen black, with narrow yellowish-white tegumentary
bands; a tuft of dark red hair before each tegula.
_Melipona interrupta_ (Latreille).--K.

32. Legs mainly red; clypeus yellow _Trigona longipes_ Smith.--K.
Legs and clypeus black _Trigona_ sp. (specimens imperfect).--P.

[A] The female of _X. nitens_ is black, with dark wings. It was
not in the material sent. The female of _X. fimbriala_ is
also black.

[B] A little purple can be seen at sides of abdomen, but it is
easily overlooked.

NOTES AND DESCRIPTIONS

#Melipona interrupta# (Latreille).--In the specimen sent, the bands on second and following segments are notched above in middle, with only an obscure linear interruption.

#Melipona fasciata barticensis# Cockerell.--One specimen has five linear red bands on abdomen, but in another the bands are very indistinct, almost obsolete.

#Melipona intermixta# Cockerell.--The ground color of the first three abdominal tergites varies; in the lighter forms that of the first is pale fulvous with the shoulders blackish, of the second and third clear ferruginous.

#Euglossa singularis# Mocsary.--Judging from the brief description, it appears that #E. meliponoides# Ducke is probably the same species.

#Euglossa decorata# Smith, var. #ruficauda#, new variety

Both sexes with abdomen ferruginous, apically more or less dusky, but the whole effect lighter and redder than typical; scutellum green with the hind margin red. Tuft on female scutellum light fulvous. The female, from Kalacoon, (Hym. 212) is the type of the variety.

#Euglossa ignita# Smith, var. #chlorosoma#, new variety

Green, without coppery tints, but variably suffused with purple. It is smaller than _E. piliventris_, with shorter mouth-parts, and the labrum pallid with a pair of dusky spots. A male in the U. S. Nat. Museum from Bartica, which I reported as _E. piliventris_, belongs here. Female _E. piliventris_ has long yellow hairs on the anterior margin of hind basitarsus, but in _chlorosoma_ the hair in this situation is black. The type of the variety is a female labelled Hym. 140. A female from Kalacoon has brassy and coppery tints on the apical part of abdomen, and must be referred to _E. ignita_ proper. The type locality of _ignita_ is Jamaica.

#Ceratina laeta# Spinola. This was described from the female. The specimen sent is a male, and differs from the female in being smaller, and having a transverse band on anterior margin of clypeus, triangular marks on lower corners of face, and a large patch (emarginate above) on labrum all ivory-white. This is very like _C. viridula_ Smith, which Ducke considers a synonym of _laeta_, but the base of the metathorax seems to differ, and the nervures are piceous. For the present, therefore, I retain _C. viridula_ as a distinct species. The female of _C. viridula_, collected by Busck in the Panama Canal Zone, is also distinguishable from that sex of _C. laeta_.

#Epicharis maculata# var. #barticana#, new variety

[Female].--Base of mandibles with a large cuneiform yellow mark; a broad black band down each side of labrum; yellow spots on prothorax large; scutellum with a pair of large transversely oval yellow areas, separated by a narrow black band; band on second abdominal segment with a posterior median projection. Kalacoon, 1916. (Hym. 217.)

#Rhathymus beebei#, new species

[Female].--Length about 22 mm., anterior wing 18 mm.; head clear ferruginous, with red hair, lower part of face more pallid, with a creamy tint; apical half of mandibles black; clypeus prominent, minutely roughened, with a smooth median line; mesothorax black, with a median ridge, the surface on each side of this strongly punctured, but shining between the punctures; rest of thorax ferruginous, and all of thorax with ferruginous hair; scutellum not bigibbous, but with an elevated transverse ridge; pleura with a blackish area below the wings; lower part of mesopleura with a shining tubercle; tegulae clear ferruginous, finely punctured; wings strongly reddened; legs clear ferruginous; abdomen fusiform, shining; first two segments dull reddish, pallid posterolaterally, the others reddish black, with the hind margins redder; apical plate very large, concave. Bartica District (Hym. 19). Very distinct by the transverse straight ridge on scutellum; nearest perhaps to the considerably smaller _R. unicolor_ Smith, but that has dark fuscous wings. The antennae are unfortunately missing.

#Augochlora callichlorura#, new species

[Female].--Length a little over 7 mm.; first two abdominal segments rather weakly vibrissate on hind margin with orange hairs; hind spur of hind leg with long spines. Head and thorax very dark purplish, nearly black, but a blue-green spot at upper end of clypeus, supraclypeal area brilliant purple, and base of metathorax strongly tinged with purple; anterior and middle legs dark, with weak purple tints, but hind femora, tibiae and basal half of basitarsi all brilliant green on outer side; abdomen short and broad, shining, very brilliant emerald green. Head broad, eyes strongly converging below; clypeus with extremely large punctures; front dull and granular; ocelli ordinary; cheeks with thin white hair; mesothorax and scutellum shining, but well punctured; base of metathorax with strong short plicae; angles of prothorax not prominent; tegulae rufotestaceous; wings grayish translucent, stigma and nervures dusky pale brown; first recurrent nervure meeting second transversocubital; abdomen with thin pale hair, hind margins of segments not darkened. Bartica District.

Unique by the combination of purplish head and thorax and green abdomen, the general effect recalling _A. atropos_ Smith.

#Florilegus barticanus#, new species.

[Male].--Length about 11 mm.; black, except as follows: first abdominal segment strongly greenish; clypeus and labrum entirely yellow; mandibles fulvous apically (but base black); antennae, except the first two joints, ferruginous beneath; hind tarsi, and apex of hind tibiae, dusky red; hair of head and thorax ferruginous, paler below, no admixture of dark hairs; eyes reddish; mesothorax shining, but distinctly punctured; tegulae clear ferruginous; wings dusky hyaline, nervures reddish fuscous; legs with pale hair, conspicuously plumose on hind tibiae; abdomen with four broad dense ochraceous hair-bands, that on fourth segment broadly excavated in middle posteriorly, on fifth broadly interrupted; sixth segment with a small patch of fulvous hair on each side; apical part of abdomen dorsally, except for the bands and patches, with very dark fuscous hair. Bartica District (Hym. 11).

Related to _F. lanieri_ Guer. from Cuba and _F. condigna_ Cresson from the United States. In the coloration of the legs it is intermediate between these two.

#Tetrapedia lacteipennis# Vachal.--It should be added to Vachal's description, that the dorsal abdominal segments 2 to 4 have yellow bands.

The Bartica collection contains a _Megalopta_ from Hoorie, but it is unfortunately broken. I have _Megalopta panamensis_ Cockerell from Maroni, French Guiana (Queensland Museum, 42).

I add the description of a new species from French Guiana, the type of which is in my collection.

#Augochlora maroniana#, new species

[Female].--Length slightly over 8 mm.; head, thorax and legs bright green; abdomen yellowish green strongly suffused with coppery, the first two segments with apical fringes of orange hair; face rather narrow; antennae black; lower middle of clypeus black; mesothorax and scutellum rough with dense punctatures, the scutellum with two copper-red spots; area of metathorax with very feeble plicae; tegulae black with pallid margin, the basal side broadly green; wings dusky; second s. m. square; first r. n. meeting second t. c; stigma dusky reddish; legs with mainly pale hair, hind tibiae with dark hair on outer side basally; hind spur with about six long spines; basal half of basitarsi green on outer side; abdomen shining, with pale ochreus hair.

Maroni, French Guiana (Queensland Mus., 43). Related to _A. cupreola_ (Ckll.), but with the vibrissate fringes on abdomen nearly twice as long, and deep orange-fulvous, and the mesothorax much more densely punctured. Also related to _A. diversipennis_ (Lep.), but with the face much narrower, and the area of metathorax much less distinctly plicate. From _A. calypso_ Sm. it is known by the wings not being yellowish, the inner orbits not edged with blue, and the tarsi not ferruginous.

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End of Project Gutenberg's Bees from British Guiana, by T. D. A. Cockerell

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