Colletes eulophi Robertson, 1891
Properties
Scientific Name: Colletes eulophi Robertson, 1891
Common Name: Colletes eulophi
Taxonomy
Colletes eulophiRobertson, 1891: 61[♀, ♂].
Lectotype ♀, designated by Stephen (1954: 269). USA, Illinois, Carlinville [INHS no. 1991].
Colletes illinoiensis Robertson, 1891 : 62 [♀]. Synonymy by Robertson (1895: 116).
Holotype ♀. USA, Illinois, Carlinville, 6 September [no year provided], on Cnicus discolor [INHS].
Distribution in Canada: Gibson and Criddle 1920 [ON, QC]; Woodcock et al. 2014 [ON].
Gibson and Criddle (1920: 132) reported Colletes eulophi Robertson from ON, QC though Timberlake (1943: 392), Michener (1951: 1046), and Stephen (1954: 266) suggested that these records likely represented specimens of C. kincaidii Cockerell, 1898, the latter study listing “Collectes eulophi Gibson and Criddle, 1920” as a synonymy of that species, though none of these studies report examining the Canadian specimens. In addition, a single ♂ specimen identifed as C. eulophi at MCZ (MCZ-ENT no. 00783159) from Ontario, Ottawa, Mer Bleue, 2 July 1938, by A.L. Melander supports its presence in Canada, as does the records of Woodcock et al. (2014), though these specimens will need to have their identifications verified. Both species are very similar (Timberlake 1943: 393; Stephen 1954: 266), and Cockerell (1938: 70) even described a subspecies, C. eulophi albertensis Cockerell, 1938, from Alberta, though it was synonymized under C. kincaidii by Stephen (1954: 270); Timberlake (1943: 392) indicated that the distribution of C. eulophi in the east did not quite reach southern Canada; a single specimen from Michigan (KSEM282299), and that at the MCZ, if identified correctly, suggests that its presence in southern ON is plausible so it is left here until specimens can be examined.
References
Cockerell TDA (1938) The bees of Alberta VII. The Canadian Entomologist 70(4): 70-71.https://doi.org/10.4039/Ent7070-4
Gibson A, Criddle N (1920) The entomological record. Annual Report of the Entomological Society of Ontario 1919: 112-134.
Robertson C (1891) Descriptions of new species of North American bees. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 18(1): 49-66.http://www.jstor.org/stable/25076556
Robertson C (1895) Notes on bees, with descriptions of new species. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 22(2): 115-128.http://www.jstor.org/stable/25076640
Stephen WP (1954) A revision of the bee genus Colletes in America north of Mexico (Hymenoptera Colletidae). University of Kansas Science Bulletin 36: 149-527.
Timberlake PH (1943) Bees of the genus Colletes chiefly from Colorado. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 81: 385-410.
Woodcock T, Pekkola L, Dawson C, Gadallah F, Kevan P (2014) Development of a Pollination Service Measurement (PSM) method using potted plant phytometry. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 186(8): 5041-5057.https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3758-x
Michener CD (1951) Subfamily Colletinae. In: Muesebeck CF, Krombein KV, Townes HK (Eds) Hymenoptera of America north of Mexico Synoptic Catalog. 2. United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Monograph, Washington. Pp. 1043-1049.
Sociality: Solitary
Nesting: Ground
Crop Preference: Not Available
Non Crop Preference: Ceanothus sp., Melilotus sp., Aster sp., Ceanothus americanus, Solidago nemoralis, Leucanthemum vulgare, Clematis sp., Eupatorium perfoliatum, Descurainia sp.
Distribution: Ontario, Quebec
Ecozone: Mixwood Plains