Ceratina (Ceratinidia) bryanti Cockerell, 1919

Ghosh, Dibyajyoti, Jobiraj, Thayyullathil, Girish Kumar, Puthuvayi & Subramanian, Kumarapuram Apadodharanan, 2023, Description of a new species of genus Ceratina Latreille, 1802 (Hymenoptera, Apoidea) from Eastern Himalayas, India with a new country record, Journal of Insect Biodiversity and Systematics 9 (1), pp. 139-154 : 145

Ceratina (Ceratinidia) bryanti Cockerell, 1919 ( Figs 3A–3H)

Material examined. 2 ♀♀, labeled as India: Arunachal Pradesh, Tawang district, Jang, Sanghar (27°31'19.2"N, 91°39'36"E, 1416 m a.s.l.), 01.xi.2019, Coll. D. Ghosh, Hand net. [ ZSIK Regd. Nos. ZSI/ WGRC /IR/INV. 18618, 18619]

Measurements (mm). Total body length: 6.92; forewing length: 5.7; head width: 2.6; head length: 2.04; eye length: 1.53; eye width: 0.49; ocellocular distance: 0.47; diameter of median ocellus: 0.19; clypeus length: 0.83; clypeus width: 1.21; labrum length: 0.39; labrum width: 0.7; scape length: 0.63; scape width: 0.12; metatibia length:1.46; metatibia width: 0.38; T2 width: 2.4; T4 width: 2.88; interantennal distance: 0.432; upper interoccular distance:1.534; median interoccular distance: 1.49; lower interoccular distance: 1.43; interocellar distance: 0.34; intertegular distance: 2.05.

Diagnosis. Clypeus smooth, with inverted ‘T’ shaped thick impression almost covering ½ of the cypeal length; paraocular region with linear marking curved inward basally; base of scape black ( Fig. 3A); gena with yellow marking extending downward almost 2/3 of the eye length with sparce punctations apically ( Fig. 3D); pronotum with unbroken yellow transverse band; four longitudinal median lines in scutum ( Fig. 3C); yellow marking on pronotal lobe and scutellum; temple region flat behind the ocelli ( Fig. 3B); protibia with yellow mark outwardly extending almost 2/3 of the length of tibia ( Fig. 3D). Scutum densely punctate anteriorly and laterally, as well as behind ocelli row of punctures along anterodmedian line and parapsidal furrow ( Figs 3A, 3B, 3C) ( Warrit et al., 2012), Propodeal triangle finely coriaceo-reticulate ( Fig. 3D).

Distribution. India (new record). Elsewhere: Nepal, southern Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesian islands like Bali, Java and Sumatra ( Warrit et al., 2012; Ascher & Pickering, 2022)

Floral association. Bidens pilosa L. ( Asteraceae ), Galinsoga parviflora Cav. ( Asteraceae ) and Fragaria vesca L. ( Rosaceae ).

Variation. Shiokawa (2006) reported the species from Nepal from lower warm-temperate zone at altitudes of 1300–1400 m and van der Vecht (1952) reported darker morphs of the species were found in high altitudes of mountain regions than that of low altitude specimens. In our present study the species is found in a similar altitude band as in Nepal but both dark ( Figs 3G–3H) and lighter ( Figs 3A–3F) morphs were collected at same altitude from the study site.