Xenochlora meridionalis sp. nov. (Hymenoptera: Apidae), a new halictine bee from eastern Brazil as evidence of past connections between Amazonia and Atlantic Forest

ABSTRACT

We describe a new species of the bee genus Xenochlora Engel, Brooks & Yanega, 1997, X. meridionalis sp. nov., based on a single female collected in the coastal forests of southeastern Brazil, in the state of Espírito Santo. The disjunct distribution exhibited by Xenochlora, with species in northern South America and in the Atlantic Forest of eastern Brazil, is discussed in light of current knowledge about other taxa with similar distribution pattern.

KEY WORDS:
Augochlorini; Halictidae; Neotropical; taxonomy; systematics