Neopasiphaeinae bees (Apoidea: Colletidae) are well known for their Amphinotic distribution in the Australian and Neotropical regions. Affinities between colletid taxa in Australia and South America have been speculated for decades, and have been confirmed by recent phylogenetic hypotheses that indicate a biogeographic scenario compatible with a trans-Antarctic biotic connection during the Paleogene. Despite this proximity, no species occurs on both sides of the Pacific Ocean, but the Neotropical species Hoplocolletes ventralis (Friese, 1924), which was described as an Australian taxon due to an error in the specimen labels. This mistake was recognized by C.D.Michener 50 years ago. We herein report that the same labeling problem also happened with Dasycolletes chalceus Friese, 1924, which remained as a tentatively placed species in the Australian genus Leioproctus until now. Moreover, Dasycolletes chalceus is interpreted as a synonym of Dasycolletes ventralis. We also provide a revised diagnosis for Hoplocolletes, describe the male of H. ventralis in detail for the first time, including a comparative study of its genitalia and associated sterna.
Secular Variation in the Pacific Ocean Region