Madrid, 7 (European press)
Published in the journal Hymenoptera Research, author Dr. Kit Prendergast, of the Curtin School of Molecular and Life Sciences, named the new species after his pet dog Zephyr after noticing that a prominent part of the insect’s face resembled a dog’s muzzle.
This rare and fascinating discovery will add to the existing knowledge about the evolution of our biodiversity and ensure that the bees, called Leioproctus zephyr, are protected by conservation efforts.
“When I first examined samples I collected during my PhD surveys to discover the biodiversity of urban native bees in Western Australia’s hot southwestern biodiversity region, I was immediately impressed by the unusual face of the bee,” Prendergast said. in the current situation.
“When I went to identify it, I found that it did not match any described species, and I was sure that if it was a known species, it would be easy to identify due to how strange it looks.
“You can only confirm a particular species by just looking at it under a microscope and going through the long process of trying to compare its characteristics with other specific species, and then moving on to the museum’s collections.
“By examining the entomology collection at the Western Australian Museum, I discovered that some specimens of Leioproctus zephyrus were first collected in 1979 but never scientifically described.”
“Leioproctus zephyr has a very limited distribution, has only been found in seven sites in southwest Australia to date, and has not been collected from its original site. They were completely absent from residential gardens and were only present in five remains of the urban bush that I inspected where they feed On two types of jacksonia plants.
By coding the stranded DNA, Prendergast was able to confirm that the new species was more closely related to another unknown species of Leioproctus.
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