Male Genitalic Morphology of Orchid Bees of the Genus Euglossa (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

Abstract

Orchid bees constitute an interesting group within the corbiculate clade, most noticeable for their appealing external features that are the basis for their classification, with almost no attention given to the diversity of male genital structures. The genus Euglossa in particular has suffered a paucity of information about male genital structures, which offer substantial information to solve some controversial taxonomic positions and add numerous characters for phylogenetic studies. The present work presents a detailed description of the genital capsule and associated sterna of Euglossa imperialis Cockerell with comparative comments on other Euglossa and Euglossini, as well as other corbiculate tribes and some closely related apine lineages. This study is the basis for an ongoing phylogenetic analysis of Euglossa, while it is also hoped that it will encourage the use of these structures in comparative work on this notable group of bees.