Author: muelandr

The examination of the holotype female of Protosmia magnicapitis (Stanek, 1969) revealed that the species does not belong to the subgenus Protosmia as assumed by Griswold (1985). Instead, it is a member of the subgenus Nanosmia as shown by the densely punctate apical margin of tergum 1, the almost cylindrical antennal flagellum and the small size. Among Protosmia species of the subgenus Nanosmia, P. magnicapitis is well characterized by the coarse punctation of scutum, scutellum and terga and particularly by the shape of the mandible, which is parallel-sided in its apical half and bears two minute and weakly separated teeth immediately followed by a long and reddish apical tooth.

Hoplitis camelina was described by Benoist (1934) based on a female collected near Ain Leuh in Morocco. This female differs from European females of H. acuticornis (Dufour & Perris, 1840) by its yellowish-red rather than (yellowish-)white pilosity of head, mesosoma and metasoma and by the reddish rather than blackish marginal zones of the terga. Recently, T. Wood collected a series of females and males of H. camelina at the same locality and date near Guercif in southern Morocco, which show a strong variability in the colour of the body pilosity and the tergal marginal zones. Some specimens have a (yellowish-)white body pilosity and dark marginal tergal zones as in European specimens of H. acuticornis, whereas others have a yellowish-red body pilosity and lightened tergal marginal zones as in H. camelina and still others a (yellowish-)white body pilosity and lightened marginal tergal zones. As no structural differences between North African specimens of H. camelina and European specimens of H. acuticornis were found in either sex, the status of H. camelina as a species of its own does not seem to be justified. Therefore, H. camelina is newly regarded as conspecific with H. acuticornis. Pending a future revision of the H. acuticornis group, H. camelina is tentatively treated as a subspecies of H. acuticornis as proposed by Warncke (1991h).

Pseudosmia taurica was described by Radoszkowski (1874) based on female and male specimens collected near Salguir on the Crimean peninsula. Radoszkowski placed this species in a newly established genus Pseudosmia, to which he added – according to the current classification – eight further species belonging to Hoplitis (Anthocopa), Osmia (Erythrogastra), Osmia (Helicosmia), Osmia (Hoplosmia) and Osmia (Metallinella). Radoszkowski’s description is far from being sufficient to narrow down the identity of P. taurica. Due to the laterally toothed male tergum 6, P. taurica is probably a member of the genus Hoplitis, which is supported by the author’s remark that the new species is morphologically close to H (Anthocopa) bisulca (Gerstaecker). The types of P. taurica were neither found in Krakow, where a large part of the bee collection of Radoszkowski is housed, nor in Moscow or St. Petersburg (L. Przybyłowicz, A. Fateryga and M. Proshchalykin, personal communication), which suggests that they are lost. Due to the insufficient species description and the unavailability of the types, P. taurica Radoszkowski, 1874 is therefore newly regarded as a nomen dubium.