Abstract
Research studies and conservation actions aimed at improving conditions for bees require a basic understanding of which species are present in a given region. The US state of Minnesota occupies a unique geographic position at the confluence of eastern deciduous forests, northern boreal forests, and western tallgrass prairie, which has led to a diverse and unique bee fauna. In recent years there have been multiple ongoing bee-focused inventory and research projects in Minnesota. Combined with the historic specimens housed in the University of Minnesota Insect Collection and other regional collections, these furnished a wealth of specimens available to form the basis of a statewide checklist. Here, we present the first comprehensive checklist of Minnesota bee species, documenting a total of 508 species in 45 genera. County-level occurrence data is included for each species, and further information on distribution and rarity is included for species of regional or national interest. Some species have their taxonomy clarified, with Perdita citrinella Graenicher, 1910 syn. nov. recognized as a junior synonym of Perdita perpallida Cockerell, 1901, P. bequaerti syn. nov. recognized as a junior synonym of P. pallidipennis Graenicher, 1910 stat. nov., Anthidiellum boreale (Robertson, 1902) stat. nov. recognized as a full species, and Anthidiellium beijingense Portman & Ascher nom. nov. is proposed for A. boreale Wu to resolve the homonymy with A. boreale (Robertson). We further include a list of species that may occur in Minnesota and highlight 11 species occurring in the state that are considered non-native. Recent collecting efforts, as well as increased taxonomic attention paid to Minnesota bees, have resulted in 66 species that have only been documented in the last 10 years. As a first step in determining native bees of conservation concern, we document 38 species that have not been detected in the state during the last 50 years and discuss their conservation status, along with other species for which evidence of decline exists. The checklist of Minnesota bees will continue to grow and change with additional surveys and research studies. In particular, recent surveys have continued to detect new bee species, and many bee groups are in need of taxonomic revision, with the most recent revisions for many genera occurring decades ago. Overall, this checklist strengthens our understanding of the bees of Minnesota and the broader region, informs conservation assessments, and establishes a baseline for faunal change.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1-95 |
| Number of pages | 95 |
| Journal | Zootaxa |
| Volume | 5304 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We thank the people of Minnesota and their representatives for supporting this work through funding provided by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources to the MNDNR (M.L. 2014, Chp. 226, Sec. 2, Subd. 05i, M.L. 2016, Chp. 186, Sec. 2, Subd. 03b, M.L. 2019, First Special Session, Chp. 4, Art. 2, Subd. 03s), DPC (M.L. 2016, Chp. 186, Sec. 2, Subd. 03a), and DPC and M. Spivak (M.L. 2014, Chp. 226, Sec. 2, Subd. 06a). These funds were instrumental in providing support for many of the recent bee surveys and taxonomic work. Thanks to Bob Dunlap for creating the species maps. We thank Tom Onuferko for confirmation of species of Epeolus and Triepeolus, and we thank Jason Gibbs for assistance with various Andrena, Nomada, and Lasioglossum. We thank Tommy McElrath of the Illinois Natural History Survey for providing images of the holotype of Anthidiellum boreale, the Milwaukee Public Museum and Julia Colby for providing images of Perdita types, and MJ Paulsen of the University of Nebraska State Museum for providing access to the Perdita perpallida types. We gratefully acknowledge Doug Yanega for assisting with the issue of the homonymy of Anthidiellum boreale and how to properly address it. Reviews by Tom Onuferko and one anonymous reviewer improved this manuscript. This work was made possible by the many seasonal technicians who collected bees for the various projects described above as well as the many volunteers and technicians who digitized specimen data at UMSP and the CNBL. We thank the many members of the Cariveau Lab who contributed specimens and species records to this work, including Christina Herron-Sweet, Kiley Friedrich, Aaron Irber, Julia Brokaw, Jillian Neece, Emma Dombrow, Laura Nicholson, Lily Fulton, and Bethanne Bruninga-Socolar. Finally, we thank the many people who contributed new or noteworthy records for the bees of Minnesota, including Heather Holm, Lisa Gelvin-Innvaer, Rachel Kranz, Erin Maxson, and Tony Ernst.
Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2023 Magnolia Press.
Keywords
- Anthophila
- Midwest
- conservation
- pollinators
- Forests
- Animals
- Minnesota
- Animal Distribution
- Taiga
- Hymenoptera
- Bees
PubMed: MeSH publication types
- Journal Article
