A checklist of the bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) of Manitoba, Canada

Abstract

We record 392 species or morphospecies of bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) for Manitoba, Canada, which is 154 more species than reported in 2015 and includes five new generic records since 2015 (Ashmeadiella, Brachymelecta, Eucera, Neolarra, and Triepeolus). Thirteen new records reported here are new for Canada: Calliopsis (Nomadopsis) australior Cockerell, Perdita (Perdita) tridentata Stevens, Brachymelecta interrupta (Cresson), Diadasia (Dasiapis) ochracea (Cockerell), Melissodes bidentis Cockerell, Nomada crawfordi crawfordi Cockerell, Nomada fuscicincta Swenk, Nomada sphaerogaster Cockerell, Nomada xantholepis Cockerell, Triepeolus cf. grindeliae Cockerell, Dianthidium (Dianthidium) parvum (Cresson), Coelioxys (Xerocoelioxys) nodis Baker, and Megachile (Megachiloides) dakotensis Mitchell. We remove the following species from the list of Manitoba bees based on re-examination of voucher material: Andrena (Ptilandrena) geranii Robertson, Andrena (Rhacandrena) robertsonii Dalla Torre, Andrena (Simandrena) nasonii Robertson, Andrena (Trachandrena) ceanothi Viereck, Andrena (Trachandrena) quintilis Robertson, Lasioglossum (Hemihalictus) pectoraloides (Cockerell), Lasioglossum (Lasioglossum) forbesii (Robertson), and Dianthidium (Dianthidium) concinnum (Cresson). We propose that Nomada alpha paralpha Cockerell, 1921 and N. alpha dialpha Cockerell, 1921 are junior synonyms of N. alpha Cockerell, 1905. Nomada arenicola Swenk, 1912 is considered a junior synonym of N. fervida Smith, 1854. Protandrena albertensis (Cockerell) and Neolarra mallochi Michener are recognised as valid species. We provide additional notes on taxonomy, nomenclature, and behaviour for select species in the list.

Asymmetric responses by bees and aculeate wasps to dune stabilisation across the southern Canadian prairies

“…Our sampling of 13 dunes across the southern Canadian prairies revealed diverse assemblages of dune-inhabiting bees and aculeate wasps. That two-fifths (40.1%) of the species in our samples were, at their time of capture, previously unpublished from one or more provinces in which they were collected (some of these records have since been published elsewhere; e.g., Gibbs et al, 2023) illustrates the potential importance of surveying aeolian sites within this region for the purpose of species discovery and documentation. It is obvious that many of our discoveries reflect a lack of extensive surveying across the larger region historically and/or available expertise to identify previously vouchered specimens.…”

“…The reasons for their association with large areas of open sand are not entirely clear but presumably varied. For example, whereas the cleptoparasitic bee Nomada fervida Smith (Apidae) is regarded as a dune specialist (Droege et al, 2010;Gibbs et al, 2023), its suspected host bee-Agapostemon splendens (Lepeletier) (Halictidae)-is not, despite nesting in areas with deep sand (Portman et al, 2022;Roberts, 1969).…”

“…The reasons for their association with large areas of open sand are not entirely clear but presumably varied. For example, whereas the cleptoparasitic bee Nomada fervida Smith (Apidae) is regarded as a dune specialist (Droege et al, 2010; Gibbs et al, 2023), its suspected host bee— Agapostemon splendens (Lepeletier) (Halictidae)—is not, despite nesting in areas with deep sand (Portman et al, 2022; Roberts, 1969). We therefore speculate that A. splendens (if indeed the host) only occurs in sufficient numbers to sustain populations of N. fervida on active sand dunes or that the latter has physiological or biogeographical constraints not shared by the host.…”

Floral strips adjacent to Manitoba crop fields attract beneficial insects shortly after establishment regardless of management type or landscape context

“…Since male and female bees often differ in size (Michener, 2007), females are typically better pollinators (Ne'eman et al, 2006), and due to the low proportion of males in our dataset (91 of 600 bees collected from nets), we analysed bee functional traits of females only. Insect functional traits were extracted from scientific literature (Gibbs et al, 2023;Holliday et al, 2014;Larochelle & Larivière, 2003;Lindroth, 1961Lindroth, , 1963Lindroth, , 1966Lindroth, , 1968Lindroth, , 1969aLindroth, , 1969b. In rare cases when trait information was missing for a species, we estimated the traits based on expert opinion and comparison with related species.…”

“…Flight and ground dispersal were integer values (1-4), with low values (one) indicating inability of flight/ ground dispersal and high values (four) indicating strong flight/ground dispersal. Bee functional traits included whether the species is ground-nesting or not (binomial), lecty (integer 1-2) and mean intertegular span (mm) (Cane, 1987;Gibbs et al, 2023). A lecty value of one indicated that the species is oligolectic and a value of two indicated that the species is polylectic.…”