Phylogeny, Phenology, and Foraging Breadth ofAshmeadiella (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae)

摘要

Ashmeadiella Cockerell (Megachilidae: Osmiini) is a bee genus endemic to North America, with greatestrichness in arid and Mediterranean regions of the southwestern United States. Species relationships ofAshmeadiella were last analyzed in the 1950s, when Robert Sokal and Charles Michener developed a novelstatistical clustering method for classification called numerical taxonomy. To revisit the taxonomic groups theyestablished, we built a molecular phylogeny including all five subgenera. Furthermore, we assembled lifehistory data to lay the foundation for future conservation programs for these bees. We chose three aspects ofbee biology that can inform conservation strategies: documenting periods of the year adult bees are flying,assembling data for the flowers each species visits, and compiling the localities and ecoregions where eachspecies is reported. Our results suggest that some Ashmeadiella species may need to be synonymized and thatthe subgenera should be revised due to non-monophyly. We therefore propose synonymizing the subgeneraCubitognatha and Chilosima with Arogochila. Biological data from published collection records reveal thatadult flight periods range from a few months to 11 mo; most species utilize floral resources from multiple plantfamilies; and, over half of the species have ranges extending into the Mojave Desert.