Lasioglossum albipenne (Robertson, 1890)

Halictus palustris Robertson, 1890: 317 [♀,♂‚]. [Preoccupied, not Halictus palustris Morawitz, 1876] [synonymy by Gibbs 2010: 57].

     Holotype ♀. USA, New Hampshire, Jefferson [ANSP: 4252]

Halictus albipennis Robertson, 1890: 317 [♀,♂‚]

     Lectotype ♀ [designated by Gibbs 2011: 43]. USA, Illinois, Carlinville, by C. Robertson [ANSP no. 4251].

Halictus nymphaearus Robertson, 1895: 117 (new name for H. palustris Robertson, 1890).

Halictus paludicola Dalla Torre, 1896: 75 (new name for H. palustris Robertson, 1890).

Halictus nubilis Lovell, 1905: 40 [♀] [synonymy by Lovell 1908: 40]

     Lectotype ♀ [designated by Covell 1972: 13]. USA, Maine, Waldoboro, 2 August [no year provided], by J.H. Lovell [USNM no. 71570] 

Halictus (Chloralictus) lactineus Sandhouse, 1924: 34 [♂‚] [synonymy by Gibbs 2010: 57]

     Holotype ♂‚. USA, Colorado, Boulder, 4 August 1908, by S.A. Rohwer [USNM no. 26435].

Halictus (Chloralictus) basilicus Sandhouse, 1924: 36 [♂‚] [synonymy by Gibbs 2010: 57]

     Holotype ♂‚. USA, Connecticut, Colebrook, 1–7 September [no year provided], by W.M. Wheeler [USNM no. 26439]

Species Notes

As indicated by Gibbs et al. (2017), there has been some confusion over the name of this bee, particularly with respect to L. nymphaearum as a valid species. Halictus nymphaearum was proposed as a replacement for the preoccupied Halictus palustris Robertson (1890) and subsequently the species has most often been referred to as valid. Gibbs (2010) resurrected the name L. oceanicum (Cockerell 1916) from synonymy as the valid name for this species after discovering that the apparent lectotype of H. palustris Robertson, labeled as such and deposited at ANSP, pertained to another this species (i.e., L. albipenne (Robertson)) rather than to Dialictus nymphaearum sensu auct. (e.g., Mitchell, 1960). Gibbs (2011) later reversed this decision as he was unable to find a valid lectotype designation, but this was in fact validly published by Cresson (1928) showing that his earlier decision (Gibbs 2010) was correct (and contra to Gibbs 2011). Gibbs et al. (2017) indicate that Lasioglossum oceanicum is the correct name for what has been typically called L. nymphaearum, and the names Halictus palustris Robertson and H. nymphaearum were returned to synonymy under this species.

The lectotype designation of Gibbs (2011: 43) for H. nubilis was not required, as Covell (1972) had already selected and designated the same specimen.

The DNA Barcode Index Number (BIN) for this species is BOLD:AAB6738.

Size

♀ body length: 5.19–6.10 mm; head length: 1.66–1.85 mm; head width: 1.61–1.82 mm; forewing length: 4.51–5.00 mm

♂‚ body length: 5.61–6.85 mm; head length: 1.54–1.85 mm; head width: 1.43–1.72 mm; forewing length: 3.97–4.58 mm

Biology

This species is presumably eusocial like most other Lasioglossum, subgenus Dialictus. Gibbs (2010, 2011) indicated that this species was common.

Extent of Occurrence (EOO) in Canada (http://geocat.kew.org/):  km2

Index of Area of Occupancy (IAO) in Canada (http://geocat.kew.org/):  km2

References

Covell CV Jr (1972) A catalog of the J. H. Lovell types of Apoidea with lectotype designations (Hymenoptera). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 74: 10-18.

Gibbs J (2010) Revision of the metallic species of Lasioglossum (Dialictus) in Canada (Hymenoptera, Halictidae, Halictini). Zootaxa 2591: 1‑382.

Gibbs J (2011) Revision of the metallic Lasioglossum (Dialictus) of eastern North America (Hymenoptera: Halictidae: Halictini). Zootaxa 3073: 1‑216.

Gibbs J, Ascher JS, Rightmyer MG, Isaacs R (2017) The bees of Michigan (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila), with notes on distribution, taxonomy, pollination, and natural history. Zootaxa 4352(1): 1-160.  https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4352.1.1

Lovell JH (1905) Four new species of Halictus from Maine. The Canadian Entomologist 37(2): 39-40. https://doi.org/10.4039/ent3739-2

Lovell JH (1908) The Halictidae of Southern Maine. Psyche 15: 32-42.

Robertson C (1890) New North American bees of the genera Halictus and Prosopis. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 17 (4): 315‑318. URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25076547

Sandhouse GA (1924) New North American species of bees belonging to the genus Halictus (Chloralictus). Proceedings of the United States National Museum 65: 1-43.