Melitta americana (Smith, 1853)
Properties
Scientific Name: Melitta americana (Smith, 1853)
Common Name: Blueberry Blunt-Horn
Taxonomy
Cilissa Americana Smith, 1853: 123 [♀].
Holotype ♀. USA, by E. Doubleday [BMNH no. 17.a.1835].
Melitta americaniformis Viereck, 1909: 50 [♀]. Synonymy by Snelling and Stage (1995: 24).
Holotype ♀. USA, New Jersey, Jamesburg, in a cranberry bog, 4 July [no year specified], by J.B. Smith [USNM no. 12255].
Taxonomic notes: The ♂ was first described by Mitchell (1960: 523).
Cockerell (1906: 5) provided a detailed description of the holotype of Cilissa americana Smith, 1853.
Melitta americaniformis Viereck, 1909 was considered a valid species in the catalogues of North American Hymenoptera (Michener 1951: 1134; Hurd 1979: 1979), but a synonym of M. americana by Mitchell (1960: 522). However, only Snelling and Stage (1995: 24) examined type material for both species and confirmed the synonymy.
DNA Barcode Index Number (BIN): BOLD:AAK7003
Biology: Melitta americana was first discovered in Canada in the province of Quebec associated with cranberry crop systems (Payette 2013), and is considered oligolectic on cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon). Although Cane et al. (1985) suggested that M. americana was the most important pollinator of deerberry (Vaccinium stamineum) in the eastern United States, bee specimens in that study are now thought to be another species, Melitta eickworti Snelling and Stage, 1995. Melitta eickworti has not been recorded in Canada, and its absence in Ontario may be a contributing factor in the rarity of deerberry in Canada, which was assessed as Threatened in Canada (PCA 2010).
Distribution in Canada: Payette 2013 [QC].
Extent of Occurrence (EOO) in Canada (http://geocat.kew.org/): N/A
Index of Area of Occupancy (IAO) in Canada (http://geocat.kew.org/): 4 km2
Body length: ♀ 12 mm ♂ 10 mm
References
Cane JH, Eickwort GC, Wesley FR, Spielholz J (1985) Pollination ecology of Vaccinium stamineum (Ericaceae: Vaccinioideae). American Journal of Botany 72(1): 135-142.http://www.jstor.org/stable/2443575
Cockerell TDA (1906) North American bees of the genera Andrena and Melitta in the British Museum.–I. Psyche 13: 5-10.
Hurd PD (1979) Superfamily Apoidea. In: Krombein KV, Hurd Jr PD, Smith DR, Burks BD (Eds) Catalog of Hymenoptera in America North of Mexico. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, 2735 pp.
Michener CD (1951) Superfamily Apoidea. 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, 1420 pp.
Mitchell TB (1960) Bees of the Eastern United States. Volume 1. North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Bulletin 141: 1-538.
Payette A (2013) First record of the bee Melitta americana (Smith) (Hymenoptera: Melittidae) for Québec and Canada. The Canadian Field-Naturalist 127(1): 60-63.
Smith F (1853) Catalogue of Hymenopterous Insects in the Collection of the British Museum. British Museum, London, 198 pp.
Snelling RR, Stage GI (1995) A revision of the Nearctic Melittidae: the subfamily Melittinae (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Los Angeles County Museum Contributions in Science 451: 19-31.
Viereck HL (1909) Descriptions of new Hymenoptera. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 11: 42-51. https://biostor.org/reference/68897
Sociality: Solitary
Nesting: Ground
Pollen Specialization: Narrow Oligolecty
Wintering Stage: Mature Larva
Crop Preference: Vaccinium macrocarpon
Non Crop Preference: Rubus sp., Vaccinium stamineum, Gaylussacia bigeloviana
Distribution: Quebec
Ecozone: Boreal Shield