Author: Ashmed 1899

Type species: Macrocera graja Eversmann, 1852, by original designation.
Subgenus: Tetraloniella s. str.
Synonyms: Xenoglossodes; Melissina.
GENUS ID
DIFFICULTY
 HARD
Clade: Anthophila
Family: Apidae
Subfamily: Apinae
Tribe: Eucerini
Distinctive traits
  • Males with very long antennae and yellow clypeus (in common with other Eucerini)
  • Eucerini with three submarginal cells
Pictures of traits to come... if you have some, please contact us.
Morphologically close genera and how to distinguish them
  • Tetralonia
Tetralonia maxillary palpus has 3 or 4 segments, a well-developped keirotrichiae on the hind-tibia, and a scopa with sparse and plumose hairs.
Tetraloniella have maxillary palpi with 5 or 6 segments, a keirotrichiae area smaller than half the tibia length and dense, often simple, hairs on the scopa.
  • Eucera (Synhalonia) (3 submarginal cells)
Eucera (Synhalonia) have a clypeus more protuberant than the width of the eye in lateral view, and galea blades more than 1.2 times longer than the length of the eye.
Tetraloniella have a clypeus less protuberant than the width of the eye, in lateral view, and galea blades barely longer than the length of the eye.
General comments on Eucera species identification
Currently, Tetraloniella species are amongst the most difficult bees to identify in Europe. In absence of a revision of the european species, we lack proper criteria for species identification, and putting a species name on specimens without having proper reference specimens compared to type specimens is hazardous. Unless you are in areas with very few species, an expert's eye will be required to sort out the specimens. Considering the high variability within the genus and the closeness to the other Eucerini, even an identification to the genus requires a great care.
Sorry, but the species identification tool is not yet available for Tetraloniella.
Please check the reference(s) at the bottom of the page for traditional keys.
List of the 19 Tetraloniella species found in Europe (IUCN 2014 + Rasmont et al 2017):
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) pollinosa (Lepeletier, 1841)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) ruficornis (Fabricius, 1804)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) salicariae (Lepeletier, 1841)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) scabiosae (Mocsáry, 1881)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) strigata (Lepeletier, 1841)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) vicina Morawitz, 1876
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) alticincta (Lepeletier, 1841)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) cinctella (Saunders, 1908)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) dentata (Germar, 1839)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) fulvescens (Giraud, 1863)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) glauca (Fabricius, 1775)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) graja (Eversmann, 1852)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) hohmanni (Tkalců, 1993)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) iberica Dusmet y Alonso, 1926
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) inulae (Tkalců, 1979)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) julliani (Pérez, 1879)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) lanzarotensis (Tkalců, 1993)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) lyncea (Mocsáry, 1879)
Tetraloniella (Tetraloniella) nana (Morawitz, 1874)
Reference with identification keys for the species:
  • Tkalců, B., 1984. Systematisches Verzeichnis der westpaläarktischen Tetralonia-und Eucera-Arten, deren Männchen als Blütenbesucher verschiedener Ophrys-Arten festgestellt wurden. Mit Beschreibung neuer Taxa (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Nova Acta Regiae Societatis Scientiarum Upsaliensis, 5(3), pp.57-77.
References used to write this page:
  • Michener, C.D. 2007. The Bees of the World, 2nd Edition. The John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.
  • Michez D., Rasmont P., Terzo, M., Vereecken, N. 2019. Abeilles d'Europes. Hymenoptères d'Europes, Volume 1. N.A.P. Editions.
  • Nieto, A., Roberts, S. P., Kemp, J., Rasmont, P., Kuhlmann, M., García Criado, M., ... & Michez, D. 2014. European red list of bees. Luxembourg: Publication Office of the European Union, 98.
  •  Rasmont, P., Devalez, Jelle, Pauly, A., Michez, D. & Radchenko, V.G. 2017. Addition to the checklist of IUCN European wild bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Annales de la Société entomologique de France 53: 17-32.