Abstract A new species of Trypoxylon is described from females and males collected in trap-nests and Malaise traps disposed in sites of Atlantic forest in southern Brazil (Paraná and São Paulo states). Trypoxylon basirufum sp. nov. is structurally very similar to Pisoxylon roosevelti Antropov, differing in details of the color pattern, clypeal apex, male antenna and propleura. In an ongoing molecular phylogenetic study of the genus Trypoxylon, T. basirufum sp. nov. did not group with Pisoxylon amenkei Antropov, a species very close morphologically to P. xanthosoma Menke, the type species of Pisoxylon. Based on these results, the scope of the Neotropical wasp genus Pisoxylon Menke is changed to include only the type species and P. amenkei, and consequently Pisoxylon roosevelti is transferred to Trypoxylon s. str.

Abstract The bee genus Rhynostelis Moure & Urban, a cleptoparasite taxon restricted to the Neotropical Region, was previously known from a single species. In the present work, the genus is revised, with three species recognized, of which two are described as new: Rhynostelis chrysogaster sp. nov. and Rhynostelis plesiognatha sp. nov. from Panamá and Brazil, respectively. Misidentification of the type species, Rhynostelis multiplicata (Smith, 1879), in previous works is pointed out and discussed. Diagnosis, illustrations and an identification key for the three recognized species are also provided.

ABSTRACT The first fossil species of the wasp genus Tracheliodes from Dominican amber is described. Tracheliodes grimaldii sp. nov. is based on a single female specimen exhibiting a somewhat generalized morphology compared to the extant fauna. While the new species resembles the Neotropical species in a few characters, it does not possess the many specialized features exhibited by this species group, especially those related to the female legs. This is the 4th genus and the 7th species of apoid wasps described from Dominican amber.

ABSTRACT We describe a new species of the bee genus Xenochlora Engel, Brooks & Yanega, 1997, X. meridionalis sp. nov., based on a single female collected in the coastal forests of southeastern Brazil, in the state of Espírito Santo. The disjunct distribution exhibited by Xenochlora, with species in northern South America and in the Atlantic Forest of eastern Brazil, is discussed in light of current knowledge about other taxa with similar distribution pattern.

ABSTRACT The new genus †Burmasphex is proposed for two fossil species, †Burmasphex sulcatus sp. nov. and †Burmasphex pilosus sp. nov., described from Myanmar Cretaceous amber. It exhibits many plesiomorphic features in relation to the extant Apoidea and is here provisionally allocated in the extinct family †Angarosphecidae.

ABSTRACT A review of bee species used as hosts of mutillid wasps in the Neotropical region is presented. Three new confirmed host records are provided for the mutillid species Hoplomutilla biplagiata Mickel, 1939, Pappognatha limes Mickel, 1939, and Tallium aracati Casal, 1962. Two potential host records are provided for Euspinolia rufula Mickel, 1938 and Lophomutilla inca Fritz and Pagliano, 1993. Additionally, Mutilla hoplitiformis Strand, 1909, is transferred to the genus Darditilla. Correlations between host nesting habits and female mutillid morphology are discussed. Lastly, all known confirmed and potential host records in the Neotropical region are compiled.

RESUMO Xylocopa bella sp. nov., a segunda espécie conhecida do subgênero Xylocopa (Nanoxylocopa) Hurd & Moure, é descrita no presente trabalho a partir de material da Serra do Espinhaço, em Minas Gerais, e da Chapada Diamantina, na Bahia. A nova espécie difere de X. ciliata Burmeister, a espécie-tipo de X. (Nanoxylocopa), principalmente por possuir pelos pálidos misturados à pilosidade negra na cabeça e no metassoma, pela pubescência mais abundante no mesoscuto e pela pilosidade mais densa nos tergos da fêmea, e pela membrana alar mais clara, o escapo inteiramente negro, presença de pilosidade finamente plumosa nos cantos anteriores do mesoscuto, a face mais estreita e pela menor distância entre o ocelo lateral e o olho no macho. Apresenta-se também um novo registro de distribuição para X. ciliata, previamente conhecida da Argentina, Uruguai, Paraguai e sul do Brasil, e tendo sido coletada recentemente no sudeste do Brasil, em Minas Gerais.

ABSTRACT Xylocopa bella sp. nov., the second known species of the subgenus Xylocopa (Nanoxylocopa) Hurd & Moure, is newly described from the Espinhaço mountain range, in the state of Minas Gerais, and the Chapada Diamantina, in the state of Bahia, in eastern Brazil. It differs from X. ciliata Burmeister, the type species of X. (Nanoxylocopa), mainly by the possession, by females, of pale hairs intermixed with the black pubescence on the head and metasoma, the more abundant pubescence on mesoscutum and the much denser tergal pilosity, and the possession, by the male, of weakly infumated wing membrane, entirely dark scape, a patch of finely plumose pubescence on the anterior corners of the mesoscutum, narrower face, and shorter distance between the lateral ocellus and the eye. Additionally, X. ciliata, previously known from Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and southern Brazil, is newly recorded from the state of Minas Gerais.

ABSTRACT A detailed protocol for chemical clearing of bee specimens is presented. Dry specimens as well as those preserved in liquid media can be cleared using this protocol. The procedure consists of a combined use of alkaline solution (KOH or NaOH) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), followed by the boiling of the cleared specimens in 60–70% EtOH. Clearing is particularly useful for internal skeletal morphological research. This procedure allows for efficient study of internal projections of the exoskeleton (e.g., apodemes, furcae, phragmata, tentoria, internal ridges and sulci), but this process makes external features of the integument, as some sutures and sulci, readily available for observation as well. Upon completion of the chemical clearing process the specimens can be stored in glycerin. This procedure was developed and evaluated for the preparation of bees and other Apoidea, but modifications for use with other insect taxa should be straightforward after some experimentation on variations of timing of steps, concentration of solutions, temperatures, and the necessity of a given step. Comments on the long-term storage, morphological examination, and photodocumentation of cleared specimens are also provided.

ABSTRACT A new stingless bee genus, Plectoplebeia gen. nov., is proposed to accommodate a peculiar Neotropical species currently placed in Plebeia Schwarz, 1938. The brief, but convoluted taxonomic history of its type species, Trigona nigrifacies Friese, 1900, is documented, with Trigona (Plebeia ) intermedia Wille, 1960 being placed as its junior synonym. Plectoplebeia gen. nov. resembles an enlarged species of Plebeia , differing by its larger body size, wider distance between the clypeus and the eye, presence of a shallow depression on the frons above the antennal sockets, coarser punctures on the head and mesosoma, a shorter, convex scutellum, an elongate propodeum and metapostnotum, long wings, with a higher number of hamuli, and by an elongate metasoma, with an unusually long first tergum. The single included species, Plectoplebeia nigrifacies comb. nov., is known only from the Bolivian Yungas, an ecoregion extending from west-central Bolivia to southeastern Peru.

ABSTRACT Two new species of the stingless bee genus Schwarziana from Brazil are described and illustrated. Schwarziana bocainensis sp. nov. is described from Serra da Bocaina, in São Paulo, and S. chapadensis sp. nov. is described from Chapada dos Veadeiros, in Goiás. An identification key to workers of the known species of Schwarziana is provided.

Os levantamentos da fauna de abelhas euglossíneas realizados até o momento ao longo da floresta Atlântica são restritos a poucas regiões e não permitem um entendimento mais aprofundado dos padrões latitudinais de distribuição e diversidade dessas abelhas. Por este motivo, duas áreas de floresta Atlântica do sul do Brasil, na planície costeira de São Paulo (Sete Barras, Faz. Morro do Capim: SP3) e do Paraná (Antonina, Reserva Natural do Rio Cachoeira: PR3), tiveram sua fauna de euglossíneos amostrada. Em PR3, foi avaliada também a eficiência de dois métodos alternativos de coleta, fazendo-se a comparação entre armadilhas plásticas, iscadas com fragrâncias, e coleta direta com rede entomológica em iscas odoríferas. A diversidade e abundância das abelhas foram muito baixas: apenas 39 machos de oito espécies foram coletados em SP3 (Euglossa iopoecila, Euglossa roderici, Eulaema nigrita, Euglossa annectans, Eulaema cingulata, Euglossa pleosticta, Euglossa viridis e Exaerete smaragdina) e 254 machos de seis espécies em PR3 (Euglossa iopoecila, Euglossa annectans, Euglossa stellfeldi, Euglossa roderici, Euglossa pleosticta e Eulaema nigrita). A comparação entre os métodos de amostragem mostrou que a coleta direta (seis espécies; 221 espécimes) foi mais eficiente do que o uso de armadilhas (três espécies; 33 espécimes). A análise de correspondência (DCA) mostrou que os dois levantamentos apresentados aqui se posicionaram relativamente próximos entre si, porém afastados dos outros locais comparados, não se agrupando com o levantamento mais meridional nos domínios da floresta Atlântica do Rio Grande do Sul, nem com aqueles conduzidos em áreas de terras baixas mais ao norte nesse bioma.

Surveys of orchid bees at the Brazilian Atlantic forest have been restricted to a few regions, making difficult to understand latitudinal patterns of distribution and diversity of these bees. For this reason we sampled the euglossine fauna at Atlantic forest areas at the coastal region of São Paulo (Sete Barras, Faz. Morro do Capim: SP3) and state of Paraná (Antonina, Reserva Natural do Rio Cachoeira: PR3), in southern Brazil. In PR3, we also evaluated the efficiency of collecting methods for sampling the fauna, comparing bait traps with direct collecting using entomological nets on fragrance baits. The diversity and abundance of bees was very low: we caught only 39 males of eight species in SP3 (Euglossa iopoecila, Euglossa roderici, Eulaema nigrita, Euglossa annectans, Eulaema cingulata, Euglossa pleosticta, Euglossa viridis and Exaerete smaragdina) and 254 males of six species in PR3 (Euglossa iopoecila, Euglossa annectans, Euglossa stellfeldi, Euglossa roderici, Euglossa pleosticta and Eulaema nigrita). Comparing the sampling methodologies, use of insect nets on fragrance baits (six species; 221 specimens) was more efficient than bait traps (three species; 33 specimens). When comparing the faunas of these two areas with other surveys at the Atlantic forest sites, through a DCA analysis, we found that the two surveys presented in this paper were placed relatively close to each other, but apart from the other sites analyzed, not clustering with the southernmost survey at the subtropical Atlantic forest of Rio Grande do Sul or with the remaining surveys carried out at northern lowland sites of this biome.

A assembléia de abelhas (Hymenoptera, Apidae) de uma área restrita de campos naturais do Parque Estadual de Vila Velha, Paraná e comparações com áreas de campos e cerrado. Foram realizadas coletas sistemáticas de abelhas em uma área restrita no Parque Estadual de Vila Velha, Paraná, no período de outubro de 2003 a setembro de 2004. Essa amostragem visou gerar subsídios para comparações entre áreas de campo dentro do Parque e com outras áreas de vegetação aberta brasileiras. A área de estudo possui cerca de quatro hectares e foi subdividida em quatro subáreas contínuas e com o mesmo perímetro. As abelhas em flores e em vôo foram capturadas com auxílio de rede entomológica. Foram coletados 1.459 espécimes pertencentes a 122 espécies de abelhas. Estas espécies estão distribuídas em 51 gêneros, 20 tribos e cinco subfamílias. As plantas visitadas correspondem a 93 espécies, pertencentes a 62 gêneros e 29 famílias. Neste estudo e em outro estudo realizado anteriormente em outra área do Parque foram coletadas 222 espécies sendo 74 espécies em comum as duas áreas e uma soma de 148 espécies restritas a uma ou outra área. Ainda, registros históricos de abelhas para Vila Velha elevam a riqueza conhecida para 261 espécies. O índice de similaridade de Morisita entre as áreas foi de 0,50 quando utilizadas as plantas como variáveis e 0,88 quando utilizados gêneros e espécies de abelhas, revelando uma notável heterogeneidade. Comparações entre as áreas do Parque Estadual de Vila Velha e áreas de campos e cerrado foram realizadas através do índice de similaridade e da análise de correspondência. Foram observados dois agrupamentos fortemente evidentes, referentes aos campos e ao cerrado. A análise de correspondência sugere que alguns gêneros podem ser relacionados a determinadas formações vegetais. Esse estudo indica que a fauna de abelhas de Vila Velha é composta principalmente por gêneros relacionados às áreas de campos, porém com presença de elementos de cerrado.

Systematic samplings of bees were conducted at a site in Vila Velha State Park, Paraná state, Brazil, from October 2003 to September 2004. This study aimed at gathering data to compare the bee fauna of grassland sites of Vila Velha with other Brazilian bee assemblages from areas covered with open plant formations. The study area has four hectares and was subdivided in four contiguous subareas of one hectare each for sampling purposes. Bees visiting flowers or in flight were captured with entomological nets. A total of 1.459 specimens, belonging to 122 bee species, 51 genera, 20 tribes and five subfamilies, were collected. The bees visited a total of 93 plant species belonging to 62 genera and 29 families. Summing the present assemblage with that from a previous study in another site at the Park resulted in a total of 222 bee species, 74 of which are species shared between the two sites and 148 were found at one of the sites only. Additional data from historic samplings at Vila Velha rise the known richness to 261 species. The Morisita similarity index between the areas is 0.50 when visited plants species are used as variables and 0.88 when using bee genera and species. The fauna of Vila Velha was compared to other bee assemblages from natural grasslands and cerrado areas using similarity indexes and correspondence analysis. Two groupings, one composed by grasslands sites and the other by cerrado sites, were recovered by the analyses. Also, the correspondence analysis indicates that some bee genera are associated to specific plant formations. Based on this study, the bee fauna of Vila Velha is composed mainly by genera related to grasslands with presence of some elements from the cerrado.