Epeolus ainsliei Crawford, 1932
Properties
Scientific Name: Epeolus ainsliei Crawford, 1932
Common Name: Ainslie s Cellophane Cuckoo Bee
Taxonomy
Epeolus ainsliei Crawford, 1932: 74 [♀].
Holotype ♀. USA, Iowa, Sioux City, 15 July 1922, by C.N. Anislie [USNM no. 534035].
Taxonomic Notes: The ♂ was first described by Brumley (1965: 27), and more recently treated by Onuferko (2017: 21).
Onuferko (2021) described a form of this species in which the pubescence of the terga was extensively pale, and indicated that it is quite variable.
DNA Barcode Index Number (BIN): BOLD:ACZ1957.
Biology: Onuferko (2018) suggested that Colletes susannae Swenk could be the likely host of this species as the two have been collected together in Manitoba in Canada, and in Wisconsin, USA (Wolf and Ascher 2009). However, other species of Colletes were also observed at these localities.
Distribution in Canada: Sheffield et al. 2014 [AB, MB]; Onuferko 2017 [AB, MB], 2018 [AB, MB, ON].
Extent of Occurrence (EOO) in Canada (http://geocat.kew.org/): 310,118 km2
Approximate Global Extent of Occurrence (EOO) (http://geocat.kew.org/): 2,908,876 km2
Index of Area of Occupancy (IAO) in Canada (http://geocat.kew.org/): 96 km2
References
Crawford JC (1932) New North American bees. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 34: 69-78.
Sheffield CS, Frier SD, Dumesh D (2014) The bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea, Apiformes) of the Prairies Ecozone, with comparisons to other grasslands of Canada. In: Giberson DJ, Cárcamo HA (Eds) Arthropods of Canadian Grasslands (Volume 4): Biodiversity and Systematics Part 2. 4. Biological Survey of Canada, Ottawa, 479 pp. [ISBN 978-0-9689321-7-9].https://doi.org/http://dx.doi.org/10.3752/9780968932179.ch11
Brumley RL (1965) A revision of the bee genus Epeolus Latreille of western America North of Mexico. MSc Thesis. Utah State University, Logan, iii + 92 pp.
Onuferko TM (2017) Cleptoparasitic bees of the genus Epeolus Latreille (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Canada. Canadian Journal of Arthropod Identification No. 30: 1-62. https://doi.org/10.3752/cjai.2017.30
Onuferko TM (2018) A revision of the cleptoparasitic bee genus Epeolus Latreille for Nearctic species, north of Mexico (Hymenoptera, Apidae). ZooKeys 755: 1-185.https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.755.23939
Onuferko TM (2021) Anomalously pale-haired specimens in three genera of cleptoparasitic bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Nomadinae). The Great Lakes Entomologist 54(1): 53-57. https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol54/iss1/9
Sociality: Parasitic
Nesting: Ground
Pollen Specialization: Not Applicable
Wintering Stage: Mature Larva
Crop Preference: Not Available
Non Crop Preference: Dalea purpurea, Dalea villosa
Distribution: Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario
Ecozone: Mixwood Plains, Prairie