HOPLITIS ANTHOCOPOIDES , A EUROPEAN MASON BEE ESTABLISHED IN NEW YORK STATE ( HYMENOPTERA : MEGACHILIDAE ) BY

Hoplitis anthocopoides (Schenck) (new combination for Osmia anthocopoides Schenck, 1853) was discovered in Albany County, New York State, in the summer ot 969 (Fig. 1). This bee is a common inhabitant of Central Europe and is found as far north as Scandinavia and as far south as Greece. In Europe, the bee is usually known as Osmia spinolae Schenck (e.g., Dalla Torre, 896; Friese, 926) or as Osmia caementaria Gerstaecker (e.g., Schmiedeknecht, 1884-85; Friese, 923 Blfithgen, 193o). However, spinolae, the oldest name or the .species, is preoccupied in Osmia, and the name caementaria is younger than anthocopoides, which has been rarely used in recent literature (e.g., Hedicke, 93o). Most European authors do not recognize Hoplitis as a separate genus and place anthocopoides and its relatives in Osmia. Hoplitis anthocopoides is similar to H. adunca (Panzer), the type species of Ho.plitis Klug and its synonym, Ctenosmia Thomsen. The species is thus a member of the nominate subgenus, which previously was restricted to the Old World. The subgenus (as Ctenosmia) was briefly described by Schmiedeknecht (1884-85).

Albany County shaded in state map, enlarged below.Circles, peripheral and important central collections of H. anthocopoides; triangle, Rensselaerville; diamond on state map, City of Albany.9: Psyche [June closely and distinctly punctate to apex, apical margin truncate, crenulate, and only slightly projecting over base of labrum.Inner margins of eyes slightly convergent below; genae subequal in width to eyes in lateral view.Mandibles (Fig. 4) tridentate, long, nar- rowed medially.Mouthparts long; length of galea subequal to width ot head; second segment ot labial palp 1.5-I.7 times length ot segment I; third segment ot maxillary palp longest, fifth segment slender.Antennae with flagellar segment much longer than pedicel and subequal in length to segments 2 plus 3. Thorax robust, metanotum on posterior surtace so that anterior part is lower than convexity ot: scutellum.Wings papillate distally.Metasoma (gaster) rather broad, length iCrom dorsal margin of anterior concavity of first tergum I.O-I.3 times maximum width, punctures not distinct; terga -5 without impunctate margins.Anterior surface ot: tergum I shallowly concave, impunctate, with longitudinal .sulcus,sharply delimited from dorsal surface.Last visible (sixth) tergum concave in lateral view, impunctate rim slightly raised and shining; last visible (sixth) sternum unmodified.
origin (Michener, 947).Hc)wever, only one native American sub- genus, ztlcidamea, also contains Old World species.The genus is absent in the Neotropical region south o Mexico.
In Hurd and Michener's (955) key to subgenera o Hoplitis based on emales, Hoplitis s.s.runs to couplet 7. The remainder o the key, excluding Acrosmia (now in Proteriades), can be changed as follows: 7(5) Mandibles short and broad, not narrowed medially and apices much narrower than eye; trst flagellar segment o antennae sub- equal to pedicel Alcidamea Mandibles longer and narrowed medially (Fig. 4) or apices nearly as broad as eye; qr.st flagellar segment longer than pedicel 8 8(7) In Mitchell's key to the species o Hoplitis based on emales, the second alternative of couplet 4 should lead to (Hoplitis s.s.) as well as to (Alcidamea), and should direct the user to 6a.
Couplet 6a may be inserted to ollow 6 as follows: 6a(4) Apical margin o clypeus crenulate (Fig. 2) first flagellar segment of antennae subequal to 2 plus 3; mandibles long, nar- rowed medially (Fig. 4) (Hoplitis s.s.) anthocopoides Schenck Apical margin of clypeus not crenulate; rst flagellar segment of antennae shorter than 2 plus 3; mandibles short and broad, not narrowed medially (Alcidamea) 7 In Mitchell's ke.y to the males, cou.plet 4 should be modified as follows: 4 (2) Small (8 mm or less) antennae filiform, median segments nar- row and elongate; abdominal tergum 7 simple, broadly rounded (Robertsonella) 5 Larger (8 mm or more); antennae modified, median segments not much longer than broad; abdominal tergum 7 produced to pointed or truncate apex 7 Ho#litis anthoco#oides then runs to couplet 8, which should be changed as follows: 8. Clypeus with appressed tomentum; margins o abdominal sterna and 2 with slender median spines (Monumetha)  In Europe, ,Hoplitis anthocopoides collects pollen exclusively rom 2 species o blue-flowered Boraginaceae, Echium vulgate Linnaeus and occasionally .dnchusaolCficinalis Linnaeus.Both plants have been introduced into eastern North America, where Echium, known as viper's bugloss or blueweed, has become a common weed on dis- turbed sites with poor rocky or sandy soil.In the area southwest Albany, New York, Echium is ound principally along roadsides, on gravel beds along streams, in slate quarries, and in overgrazed pas- tures.I observed that the female bees collect pollen only from Echium vulgare (zlnch.usawas not found there) moreover, both sexes visit only Echium or nectar.
This oligotrophy allowed us to accurately plot the range of H.
anthocoloides by examining roadside stands o Echium, whose dis- tinctive appearance can be easily recognized from a slowly moving automobile.Peripheral and important central collections of the bee are indicated by circles on the _Albany County map in Figure I. _All o hese sites are on the Helderberg Plateau, an extension o the Catskill Mountains largely covered by second-growth woodlands and pastures.The bee is most abundant to the southwest o Rensselaer- ville (center o operations or this study, indicated by a triangle in Fig. I), where extensive rocky pastures provide both nest sites and abundant Echium.To the north, the Helderberg Plateau drops precipitously to the Mohawk River valley, vhere Echium is almost completely absent.To the south, the plateau descends more gradu- ally to the Catskill Creek valley, where Echium is also scarce.
Hoklitis anthocotoides was represented by ew specimens in most peripheral collecting sites, sometimes only by a single male, despite intensive searching.The bee was not found in patches of Echium beyond the indicated range and was also consistently absent from some patches within its range boundaries.The exten o the range towards the Hud.sonRiver in the east, and especially towards Scho- harie County in the west, may not be accurate since I was not able to cruise many roads in those areas before the end o the bee's flight season.However, a collecting trip through Schoharie County to C)tsego County during flight season produced no H.anthocoloides at apparently suitable stands o Echium.
In Europe, H. anthocoiboides i,s well known or the mortar-and- pebble nests it builds on the surfaces of boulders (see especially (]ersaecker, I869; Torka, I913; These nests are constructed very similarly to those o the tamous European mason bees of the genus Chalicodoma.and I propose that we also use the vernacular name "mason bee" to.refer to LI. antho- copoides and related Hoplitis (LIoplitis) with similar habits.My study ot its nesting behavior in New York will be presented in a t;uture paper.
None of the native American Hoplitis whose biologies have been investigated are mason bees.All but one species build rows of cells, one above the other, in tubular holes in dead stems or tree trunks (reviewed by Michener, 947, and Hurd and Michener,   955).The one exception, H. (Dasyosmia) biscutellae (Cockerell), has been recorded as nesting in soil by Linsley and MacSwain (1943) and reusing mud-dauber (Sceliphron) nests by Stephen, Bohart, and   Torchio (969.).However, some American Osmia build exposed nests on rock surfaces (Stephen, Bohart, and Torchio, 969), including at least one species at Rensselaerville.
Freshly emerged males and emales of H. anthocopoides were first seen on June 14.Adults are common to the latter part o July, when they taper off, and are rare after August I.The last adult was seen on August 19.Discussion Mega.chilid bees have frequently been transported long distances by man, probably because their nests are often concealed in the stems and crevices of plants and other articles of commerce.In the United States, 5 Old World species other than the mason bee have been intruduced in historical times (Mitchell, 962 Jaycox, I967).
Megachile rotundata (Fabricius) and M. concinna Smith are now both widespread in this country, and the former species has been semi-domesticated for alfalfa seed production in the Pacific North- west.Megachile concinna presumably reached this country from the West Indies after World War II, and ha.d probably reached the West Indies from Africa in the early gth century.Megachile aI)icalis Spinola has been recorded several times from eastern North America but may not be established.Chalicodoma lanata (Fabricius) was apparently introduced into the West Indies with the slave trade, and has recently been found in southern Florida.The most recent introduction has taken place around Ithaca., New York, about 12o miles from the range of H. anthocotoides, where the European A nthidium manicatum (Linnaeus) was first collected in I963 (Jaycox, 1967).This species is common in the Ithaca area and is extending its range (L.Pechuman, personal communication).In addition, 4 other North American megachilid bees, Osmia coerulescens (Linnaeus), O. inermis Zetterstedt O. nigriventris Zetterstedt and Megachile centuncularis (Linnaeus), also occur in the Old World (Mitchell, 1962), and may have been accidentally introduced by man before records were kept.
_A_ll o1: the introduced megachilids except the mason bee are polylectic, although they show pre1:erences or certain flowers and re- quently visit plants o European origin (Hurd, I954; Stephen and   Torchio, 96 Pechuman, 967).Hoplitis anthocopoides is the first oligolectic bee o any amily to accidentally 1:ollow its host plant to the United States.The host is a widespread and common weed and the nest sites are abundant and rarely used by native bee.s.
There is little doubt that H. anthocopoides will extend its range over much o1: eastern North America.Since even vanguard mason bees can be easily detected on roadside stands o1: viper's bugloss, its range extension can be followed more exactly than that of any other introduced species.I urge entomologists in the Northeast to be on the watch 1:or the mason bee.

Summary
Hoplitis (Hoplitis) anthocopoides occupied a 25 mile diameter range in the Helderberg Plateau ot: Albany County, New York, in 969.It is the rst species o1: the nominate subgenus to occur in the Western Hemisphere.The bee is described and distinguished rom other American Hoplitis, and Hurd and Michener's key to the American subgenera and Mitchell's key to the Eastern species o Hoplitis are modied to incIude H. anthocopoides.The mason bee builds exposed mortar-and-pebble nests on surfaces o rocks and visits only the introduced weed Echium vulgare or pollen and nectar.

Fig. 1 .
Fig. 1.Range of Hoplitis anthocopoides in New York State in 1969.Albany County shaded in state map, enlarged below.Circles, peripheral and important central collections of H. anthocopoides; triangle, Rensselaerville; diamond on state map, City of Albany.
as a subgenus o dnthocopa by Michener and Sokal, 957) can be distinguished by means o the .subgenerickeys to A nthocopa and Hoplitis in Hurd and Michener 955).Hoplitis (Hoplitis), based on anthocopoides, runs to couplet 8 o Hurd and Michener"s key to Hoplitis based on males, i the second alternative o couplet 6 is changed to read: [;eventh tergum produced to a pointed or truncate apex; antennae modied; scape oten thickened, the flagellum flattened and the last segment oten pointed; clypeus with the usual long hairs 7 The remainder o the key should be changed as ollow.s:8(7) Antennal pedicel almost completely hidden in concavity at end o scape when antennae are in normal position; last antennal segment bent and drawn out to a point A lcidamea Jkntennal pedicel at least partly exposed; last antennal segment rounded, or ii: pointed as in Alcidam,ea, posterior coxae each with CIypeal margin not crenulate, impunctate; apices o( mandibles nearly as broad as eye; Western New York species o Hoplitis Mitchell (x962) lists 6 native species o Hoplitis that are known rom or might be expected to occur in New York State.NIo,st are less robust and smaller than H. anthocopoides; only H. cylindrica (Cresson) and H. truncata (Cresson) typically overlap it in size.
Friese, I923; and Joker, Note added in proof: In 1970 H. anthocopoides was found throughout most of Albany County, east to the Hudson River, and west 10 miles into Sehoharie County.This range extension probably represents previously established populations in areas not searched in 1969.