The primary types of some species of Centris bees described by European entomologists in the 18th and 20th centuries (Hymenoptera: Apidae) Felipe VIVALLO HYMN Laboratório de Hymenoptera, Departamento de Entomologia, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista, São Cristóvão 20940‒040 Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. Email: fvivallo@yahoo.com urn:lsid:zoobank.org:author:AC109712-1474-4B5D-897B-1EE51459E792 Abstract. In this paper are presented notes on the primary types of some species of the oil-collecting bees of the genus Centris described by the European naturalists and entomologists Amédée Louis Michel Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau, Anders Christian Jensen-Haarup, Arthur Louis Marie Joseph Vachal, Charles Émile Blanchard, Embrik Strand, Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville, Guillaume-Antoine Olivier, Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville, Jean Pérez, Johann Christoph Friedrich Klug, Johann Ludwig Christ, John Obadiah Westwood, Josef Anton Maximilian Perty, Jules Dominique, Karl Hermann Konrad Burmeister, Karl Wilhelm von Dalla Torre, Massimiliano Spinola, Peter Cameron, and Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson. Information on the type status, type locality and depository are provided. In order to stabilize some names, lectotype designations were made for Centris rhodophthalma, C. sponsa var. asuncionis, C. transversa, Hemisia byssina and Ptilotopus americanus. Centris sponsa var. asuncionis is withdrawn from the synonymy of C. sponsa, revalidated and raised to species level. Centris byssina is proposed as nomen oblitum and as a new junior synonym of C. trigonoides, nomen protectum. Keywords. Anthophila, biodiversity, oil-collecting bees, solitary bees, systematics. Vivallo F. 2023. The primary types of some species of Centris bees described by European entomologists in the 18th and 20th centuries (Hymenoptera: Apidae). European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27. https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2023.864.2083 Introduction Centris Fabricius, 1804 is one of the New World solitary bee lineages with the highest species richness and one of the largest distribution ranges (Moure et al. 2007). This great specific diversity results in a complex taxonomic history, both of its subgenera and of the species that have been described. In recent years, a series of taxonomic works on the species of the genus have been published (Vivallo 2016, 2019a, 2019b, 2019c, 2020a, 2020c, 2020e, 2020f, 2020g, 2020h, 2020i, 2020j) which allowed the stabilization of the nomenclature of the group and the proposition of new synonyms and revalidations. 1 European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 ISSN 2118-9773 https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2023.864.2083 www.europeanjournaloftaxonomy.eu 2023 · Vivallo F. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0). R e s e a r c h a r t i c l e urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:4F73AB5F-A4B7-43AD-949E-A40FFEEABF4F mailto:fvivallo%40yahoo.com?subject= https://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:author:AC109712-1474-4B5D-897B-1EE51459E792 https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2023.864.2083 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4487-0804 http://www.europeanjournaloftaxonomy.eu/index.php/ejt/index https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:4F73AB5F-A4B7-43AD-949E-A40FFEEABF4F The vast majority of the species in this group was described by European entomologists, who had access to the material that was collected in America and taken to Europe through scientific expeditions or by private collectors who later marketed their specimens (Vivallo 2020c). This material was deposited in the most important museums of the continent, being available to specialists such as Frederick Smith (1805‒1879), Amédée Louis Michel Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau (1770‒1845), Sándor Mocsáry (1841‒1915), Heinrich Friese (1860‒1948), Johan Christian Fabricius (1745‒1808), Adolf Ducke (1876‒1959), Giovanni Gribodo (1846‒1924), Curt Schrottky (1874‒1937), and Theodore Dru Alison Cockerell (1866‒1948), among others. The primary types of Centris described by those authors were studied by Vivallo (2019a, 2019b, 2020a, 2020c, 2020e, 2020g, 2020h, 2020i, 2020j), providing taxonomic stability to the group. Continuing this line, the primary types of the species described by the European entomologists Anders Christian Jensen-Haarup, Arthur Louis Marie Joseph Vachal, Charles Émile Blanchard, Embrik Strand, Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville, Guillaume-Antoine Olivier, Jean Pérez, Johann Christoph Friedrich Klug, Johann Ludwig Christ, John Obadiah Westwood, Josef Anton Maximilian Perty, Jules Dominique, Karl Hermann Konrad Burmeister, Karl Wilhelm von Dalla Torre, Massimiliano Spinola, Peter Cameron, Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson, and Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville with his friend Amédée Louis Michel Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau are here studied, providing notes on the type status and depository of the type material. Material and methods All labels are here considered whitish and rectangular and the data contained on them is black, handwritten or printed unless otherwise indicated. The specific features of the labels, like coloration or type of writing, are given in square brackets ([]). The backward slash (\) indicates other labels on the pin of the same specimen, and two backward slashes (\\) indicate the information on the reverse of the label, all quoted verbatim. As a result of aging, some originally white labels now have a slightly yellowish coloration. To differentiate them from current white labels, they are indicated as “yellowish white”. Photographs were enhanced and organized in plates using Photoshop (ver. CS2). The specimens cited are housed in the following collections: MACN = Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales, Buenos Aires, Argentina MHNN = Muséum d’Histoire naturelle de Nantes, Nantes, France MNHN = Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, Paris, France MNRJ = Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil MSNT = Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali di Torino, Torino, Italy NHMD = Natural History Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark NHMUK = Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom OUMNH = Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Oxford, United Kingdom ZMB = Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, Germany ZSM = Zoologische Staatssammlung München, Munich, Germany. In most cases the authors cited here did not explicitly indicate how many specimens they used in the species descriptions and this cannot be inferred objectively from the original descriptions. Following the recommendation 73F of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (1999, ICZN henceforth), I have considered all specimens as from a syntype series, even if only a single exemplar was found in the collections studied. Exemplars designated lectotypes will be properly labeled as such, as well as eventual paralectotypes. Results Recognition of the type specimens The primary types of the species studied were recognized following the information indicated in their respective original descriptions, place of deposit, as well as the data on labels of the specimens. Both European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 2 pieces of information were contrasted in order to verify the existence of inconsistencies that could interfere in the recognition of the primary types. Charles Émile Blanchard Charles Émile Blanchard (1819‒1900) was one of the most famous French zoologists and entomologists of the 19 th century. In 1833, when he was only 13 years old, Blanchard began to frequent the laboratory of the MNHN, thanks to the help of the famous French naturalist and entomologist Jean Victoire Audouin (1797–1841), who taught entomology at that institution. At the Museum, Blanchard became technician in 1838, and a few years later assistant-naturalist. He published valuable works in various zoological groups, which allowed him to occupy the chair of natural history of crustaceans, arachnids and insects. In 1860, he began to lose his sight and became blind in 1890. During this period, he gradually restricted access to the collections to amateurs, triggering a general decline in the museum’s activities and, simultaneously, the dispersion of the collections. Blanchard died in Paris at the age of 80. Blanchard’s Centris bee Blanchard described only one taxon in the genus Centris, the species C. langsdorfii Blanchard, 1840 in homage to the German naturalist, explorer and Russian diplomat Georg Heinrich von Langsdorff (1774–1852). Blanchard did not indicate the sex or the number of specimens studied for the description of this species, although based on the data mentioned, they must correspond to one or more females collected in Brazil. The specific locality where the material came from, as well as its collector, are unknown. It is possible that it was collected by Langsdorff himself during his stay as a Russian consul in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. From there, he organized expeditions to Minas Gerais State, between 1813 and 1820, and to the Amazon between 1825 and 1829. Considering the current known distribution range of this species, its type material was probably collected during the first expedition in southeastern Brazil. Unfortunately, the current whereabouts of the type material of C. langsdorfii are unknown. Possibly, it was lost during the dispersal of the collections of the MNHN between 1860 and 1892. Class Insecta Linnaeus, 1758 Order Hymenoptera Linnaeus, 1758 Family Apidae Latreille, 1802 Genus Centris Fabricius, 1804 Centris langsdorfii Blanchard, 1840 Centris langsdorfii Blanchard, 1840: 405 (spelled langsdorsii [sic] in the text and langsdorfii in the figure legend). Type data Syntypes female, whereabouts unknown. Type locality Brazil. Karl Hermann Konrad Burmeister Karl Hermann Konrad Burmeister (1807–1892) was a German naturalist, zoologist, entomologist, herpetologist, botanist and geologist. He was nationalized Argentinean and developed most of his career in that country. In 1850, Burmeister traveled to Brazil, visiting Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais states. VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 3 European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 4 In the latter, he went to Lagoa Santa spending a season in company of the Danish naturalist and father of Brazilian paleontology and archeology Peter Wilhelm Lund (1801–1880). From 1862 to 1892, Burmeister was director of the Argentinean Museum of Natural Sciences, currently known as Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales (MACN). He died in Buenos Aires in 1892, at the age of 85. Burmeister’s Centris bees Burmeister described numerous species of flora and fauna from Argentina, four of them being bees of the genus Centris. Three of these species were described based on series of specimens of both sexes collected mainly in Mendoza and Buenos Aires. Although Burmeister did not indicate the name of the collector of those specimens, it is very likely that they were collected by him during his many trips into the interior of the country. Some specimens of the primary series bear labels of holotype, paratype or allotype. However, they were labeled as such after the description of the species and not by Burmeister, since the handwriting is different, and mainly because the concept of paratype and allotype was not established in Burmeister’s time. All type specimens are housed in the MACN. Centris muralis Burmeister, 1876 Centris muralis Burmeister, 1876: 162–163. Type data This species was described based on specimens of both sexes collected in Mendoza and Rio Negro, Argentina. The lectotype male was designated by Moure (1960a) and it has the following data label: [light green label] Carm. Patag. [printed]\ [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 223 [handwritten]\ [light blue label] 100 [printed]\ [black-rimmed pink label] Centris [handwritten] HOLOTYPUS [printed] muralis Burm [handwritten]\ [white yellowish label] lectotipo desig Moure, 1960 [handwritten in blue] (MACN). Paralectotype female with the following data label: [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 223 [handwritten]\ [light green label] Mendo-za. [printed]\ [black-rimmed white yellowish label] muralis Burm. Mendozae [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed pink label] Centris [handwritten] ALLOTYPUS [printed] muralis Burm [handwritten] (MACN). In the MACN there is a conspecific (metander) male without collection locality but with the same number “223” present in the lectotype and the paralectotype specimens. This possible additional paralectotype has the following data label: [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 223 [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed light yellowish orange label] Centris [handwritten] PARATYPUS [printed] muralis Burm. [handwritten] (MACN). Type locality Argentina: Buenos Aires Province, Carmen de Patagones. Centris nigriventris Burmeister, 1876 Centris nigriventris Burmeister, 1876: 165. VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 5 Type data This species was proposed based on an undetermined number of specimens of both sexes collected in Mendoza and Buenos Aires. Two males and one female belonging to the type series were examined, the latter being here designated as lectotype. The chosen specimen has the following data label: [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 224 [handwritten]\ [light green label] Buen. Ayres. [printed]\ [black-rimmed white yellowish label] nigriventris Burm. Rep. Arg. [handwritten]\ [black- rimmed pink label] Centris [handwritten] ALLOTYPUS [printed] nigriventris Burm. [handwritten] (MACN). Paralectotype male with the following data label: [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 224. [handwritten]\ [light green label] Mendo-za. [printed]\ [black-rimmed pink label] Centris [handwritten] HOLOTYPUS [printed] nigriventris Burm. [handwritten] (MACN). Paralectotype male with the following data label: [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 224. [handwritten]\ [light green label] Mendo-za. [printed]\ [black-rimmed light yellowish orange label] Centris [handwritten] PARATYPUS [printed] nigriventris Burm. [handwritten] (MACN). Type locality Argentina: Buenos Aires Province, Buenos Aires. Centris pectoralis Burmeister, 1876 Centris pectoralis Burmeister, 1876: 161–162 (junior synonym of C. obsoleta Lepeletier, 1841). Type data This species was described apparently based on a single female collected in Corrientes Province, Argentina. The holotype bears the following data label: [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 221. [handwritten]\ [light green label] Döcong [undecipherable handwriting]\ [black-rimmed white yellowish label] pectoralis Burm. Corrient. [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed pink label] Centris [handwritten] HOLOTYPUS [printed] pectoralis Burm [handwritten] (MACN). Type locality Argentina: Corrientes Province, Río Guayquiraró. Centris vulpecula Burmeister, 1876 Centris vulpecula Burmeister, 1876: 164. Type data This species was described based on a series composed of specimens of both sexes collected in Uruguay, Brazil and in the Argentinean cities of Mendoza and Paraná. According to Roig-Alsina (2000), the specimen from Brazil corresponds to C. tarsata Smith, 1874 and those from Uruguay and Paraná to C. trigonoides Lepeletier, 1841. The male from Mendoza was designated by him as lectotype. The specimen has the following data label: [red-rimmed white yellowish label] 231. [handwritten]\ [light green label] Mendo-za. [printed]\ vulpecula Nobis [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed pink label] Centris vulpecula Burm. ♂ [handwritten] LECTOTYPUS [printed] A. Roig Alsina 2000 [handwritten] (MACN). The paralectotypes are also housed in the same collection. European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 6 Type locality Argentina: Mendoza Province, Mendoza. Peter Cameron Peter Cameron (1847‒1912) was a very enthusiastic English amateur entomologist and specialist of Hymenoptera. He was a very prolific, and by some considered chaotic, descriptor of species (Morley 1913). His collection is currently housed at NHMUK; his type specimens are also deposited in this collection, as well as at OUMNH. Cameron died in New Mills, England, aged 65. Cameron’s Centris bee Cameron described only one species of Centris under the name Paracentris fulvohirta Cameron, 1903. The description was based on an undetermined number of males, collected by the English mountaineer, explorer and illustrator Edward Whymper (1840‒1911). In 1880, Whymper organized an expedition to Ecuador, designed primarily to collect data for the study of altitude sickness and the effect of reduced pressure on the human body (Chisholm 1911). The results of his journey were published in 1892, in a volume entitled “Travels amongst the Great Andes of the Equator” (Bonney 1892). During his travel, Whymper made a collection of amphibians and reptiles that he handed over to the Belgian-British zoologist George Albert Boulenger (1858‒1937) at the British Museum (Boulenger 1882). He also made a very large collection of insects that were housed in the same institution and later studied by Cameron. Centris fulvohirta (Cameron, 1903) Paracentris fulvohirta Cameron, 1903: 236 (junior synonym of Centris caelebs Friese, 1899). Type data Lectotype male (NHMUK, revised). Subsequent designation: Moure (1999). Data label: [light yellow label] Paracentris fulvohirta Cam. Type Ecuador [handwritten]\ [red-rimmed circular label] Type [printed]\ B.M. TYPE HYM. [printed] 17B.907. [handwritten]\ Cameron Coll. 1904‒29. [printed]\ Michachi Ecuador 9-10,000 feet. Ed. Whymper. [printed]\ [black-rimmed] Lectotype fulvohirta Cm. [handwritten] Det. J.S. Moure 19 [printed] 57 [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed] Centris (Paracentris) caelebs Friese, 1900 F. Zanella det., 1998 [printed] (NHMUK). Paralectotype with the following data label: Paracentris fulvohirta Cam. Type Ecuador [handwritten]\ [red-rimmed circular label] Type [printed]\ B.M. TYPE HYM. [printed] 17B.907. [handwritten]\ Cameron Coll. 1904‒29. [printed]\ Quito [handwritten] Ecuador [printed] 9000 [handwritten] feet. Ed. Whymper. [printed]\ C. fulvo-hirta- paratype in the collection [handwritten]\ [white label with yellow lateral margins] PARALECTOTYPE [printed] Paracentris fulvohirta Cameron, 1903 [handwritten] (NHMUK). Type locality Ecuador: Pichincha Province, Machachi (9–10 000 feet). Johann Ludwig Christ Johann Ludwig Christ (1739‒1813) was a German naturalist, gardener and pastor. Despite being a specialist in Hymenoptera, he also became interested in fruit growing, agriculture and beekeeping while he was a pastor, first in Wetterau and later in Kronberg, Germany (Wilhelm 1957). Christ died in his country of origin, aged 74. VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 7 Christ’s Centris bee Christ only contributed to the knowledge of Centris describing a variety of C. flavifrons (Fabricius, 1775) from Brazil. Currently, it is considered a junior synonym of that species. Centris flavifrons brasiliana (Christ, 1791) Apis flavifrons brasiliana Christ, 1791: 140 (junior synonym of C. flavifrons). Type data This variety was proposed based on an undetermined number of females collected in Brazil. Unfortunately, the whereabouts of the type material are currently unknown. Type locality Brazil. Karl Wilhelm von Dalla Torre Karl Wilhelm von Dalla Torre (1850–1928) was an Austrian naturalist. He studied mathematics and natural sciences at the Universität Innsbruck, where he was later hired as professor of zoology (Clément 1928). He studied actively the taxonomy of Hymenoptera, where he published several classic works on specific groups as well as the first catalogues of the order. Dalla Torre died in Innsbruck, aged 77. Dalla Torre’s Centris bee Dalla Torre did not describe any species of Centris, but instead proposed a new name for C. thoracica Smith, 1874, a junior homonym of a species previously described by Lepeletier (1841). The primary type of C. thoracica Smith is currently housed at NHMUK and it bears the following data label: [red- rimmed circular label] Type H.T. [printed]\ B.M. TYPE HYM. [printed] 17B.904. [handwritten]\ St. Dom. 55.1. [printed]\ Centris thoracica Smith (Type) [handwritten]\ NHMUK 01081396 [QR code] (NHMUK). Centris domingensis Dalla Torre, 1896 Centris domingensis Dalla Torre, 1896: 304 (nom. nov. for C. thoracica Smith, 1874). Centris thoracica – Smith 1874: 370 (junior primary homonym of C. thoracica Lepeletier, 1841). Jules Dominique Jules Dominique (1838–1902) was a French abbé and naturalist, specialist of lichens and insects. He was in charge of organizing the entomological collection of Nantes, France, which houses a large part of his collection (Bureau 1903). Dominique died in his country of origin, aged 64. Dominique’s Centris bees Dominique described three species in Centris, unfortunately, all currently considered junior synonyms. The specimens he studied were collected along the Maroni River by the family of Constant Bar (1817‒1884) a French entomologist who lived in French Guiana. European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 8 Centris debilis Dominique, 1898 Fig. 1A Centris debilis Dominique, 1898: 59 (junior synonym of C. analis (Fabricius, 1804)). Type data This species was proposed based on an unknown number of males. The lectotype was designated by Rasmussen et al. (2007) and it bears the following data label: [black-rimmed white yellowish label] Maroni Guyane-Française legs E. Bar [printed]\ Centris (Heterocentris) analis Fabricius, 1804 Det. Rasmussen & Mahé [printed]\ [red label] LECOTYPE Centris debilis Dominique, 1898 Des. Rasmussen, 2006 [printed] (MHNN) (Fig. 1A). Type locality French Guiana: Maroni River. Centris dominiquella Dominique, 1898 Fig. 1B Centris dominiquella Dominique, 1898: 59 (junior synonym of C. nitens Lepeletier, 1841). Type data This species was described based on an undetermined number of females. The lectotype was designated by Rasmussen et al. (2007) and it has the following data label: [black-rimmed white yellowish label] Maroni Guyane-Française legs. E. Bar [printed]\ Centris (C.) nitens Lepeletier de S.F., 1841 Det. Rasmussen & Mahé [printed]\ [red label] LECOTYPE Centris dominiquella Dominique, 1898 Des. Rasmussen, 2006 [printed] (MHNN) (Fig. 1B). Fig. 1. Data labels. A. Centris debilis Dominique, 1898 (lectotype ♂). B. Centris dominiquella Dominique, 1898 (lectotype ♀︎). VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 9 Type locality French Guiana: Maroni River. Centris zonalis Dominique, 1898 Fig. 2A Centris zonalis Dominique, 1898: 59 (junior synonym of C. laticincta (Spinola, 1841)). Type data Dominique described this species using an undetermined number of female specimens. The lectotype was designated by Rasmussen et al. (2007) and it has the following data label: [black-rimmed white yellowish label] Maroni Guyane-Française [printed]\ Centris (Melacentris) insignis Smith, 1854 Det. Rasmussen & Mahé [printed]\ [red label] LECTOTYPE Centris zonalis Dominique, 1898 Des. Rasmussen, 2006 [printed] (MHNN) (Fig. 2 A). Paralectotype female with the following data label: [black-rimmed white yellowish label] Maroni Guyane-Française [printed]\ Centris ( Melacentris) insignis Smith, 1854 Det. Rasmussen & Mahé [printed]\ [yellow label] PARALECTOTYPE Centris zonalis Dominique, 1898 Des. Rasmussen, 2006 [printed] (MHNN). Type locality French Guiana: Maroni River. Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson (1809‒1848) was a German doctor and entomologist. He worked actively in different areas of zoology, mainly with beetles, which led him to be appointed curator of the Coleoptera collection of the ZMB (Klug 1850). Erichson died very young, only 39 years old. Erichson’s Centris bee Erichson described several new species of insects, but only two in Centris. When he proposed them, Hemisia Klug, 1807 was considered the valid name of the genus, so he placed his species in it. Later, the genus name was updated to Centris. Centris clitelligera (Erichson, 1848) Hemisia clitelligera Erichson, 1848: 591 (junior synonym of C. flavifrons). Type data This species was proposed based on an undetermined number of females collected in Guyana. Unfortunately, the whereabouts of the syntypes are unknown. Type locality Guyana. Centris varia (Erichson, 1848) Hemisia varia Erichson, 1848: 591. European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 10 Type data As the previous species, Erichson described this new taxon based on an undetermined number of females. The whereabouts of the syntypes are unknown. Type locality Guyana. Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville (1799‒1874) was a French entomologist, famous for his work “Iconographie du Règne Animal de G. Cuvier”, a complement to the work published by the French zoologists Georges Cuvier (1769‒1832) and Pierre André Latreille (1762‒1833). Guérin-Méneville founded several magazines of zoology and he was an active member of the Société Entomologique de France. He passed away in Paris, aged 74. Guérin-Méneville’s Centris bee Guérin-Méneville described a variety in the genus Anthophora Latreille, 1803 that actually belongs to Centris. Unfortunately, his contribution was unsuccessful, since the variety he proposed corresponds to a species previously described by Lepeletier in 1841. Centris versicolor apicalis (Guérin-Méneville, 1844) Anthophora versicolor apicalis Guérin-Méneville, 1844: 455 (junior synonym of C. poecila Lepeletier, 1841). Type data This variety was described based on an undetermined number of females collected in Cuba. The whereabouts of the syntypes are unknown. Type locality Cuba. Anders Christian Jensen-Haarup Anders Christian Jensen-Haarup (1863–1934) was a Danish entomologist specialized in Hymenoptera. In 1904, he traveled to Argentina on an insect collecting expedition and spent most of his time in the province of Mendoza. In 1906, he returned to Argentina accompanied by his compatriot, colleague and friend Peter Jörgensen (1870–1937). Both naturalists made extensive collections of insects, which they had to sell to cover travel costs or send to specialists for identification (Rasmussen 2007). The specimens of his collection that were not sold or retained by some of their colleagues are currently housed at NHMD. Jensen-Haarup died in Denmark, aged 71. Jensen-Haarup’s Centris bee During his stay in Mendoza, Jensen-Haarup collected some specimens including a new species of Centris that he dedicated to Laureano Lyngbye, his host in the city. Although he did not indicate the date of collection, the specimens were probably collected during his second visit to Argentina. VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 11 Centris lyngbyei Jensen-Haarup, 1908 Fig. 2B Centris lyngbyei Jensen-Haarup, 1908: 107–108. Type data To describe this species, Jensen-Haarup mentioned that he studied four females collected in Chacras de Coria, Argentina. However, the characters cited in the description belong to males, not females. The lectotype specimen was designated by Zanella (2002) and it bears the following data label: [black-rimmed] Centris lyngbyei n. sp. J.- Hrp [handwriten] Jensen-Haarup det. [printed]\ [black-rimmed] Chacr. de Coria Prov. de Mendoza Rep. Argentina Jensen-Haarup [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed] Type Coll. J = Hrp. [handwritten]\ [red label] Holo [handwritten] TYPE [printed]\ [white label with black discontinuous strokes] Centris tricolor ♀︎ [handwritten] 1907 Friese det. [printed] Fr. [handwritten]\ [pink label] LECTOTYPE Centris lyngbyei Jensen-Haarup, 1908 F. Zanella, 1999 [printed]\ ZMUC 00240257 [printed] (NHMD) (Fig. 2B). Type locality Argentina: Mendoza Province, Chacras de Coria. Johann Christoph Friedrich Klug Johann Christoph Friedrich Klug (1775‒1856) was a German entomologist. He taught medicine and entomology at the Universität zu Berlin (currently the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) where he also worked as curator of the insect collection (Gerstaecker 1856). He died in Berlin, aged 80. Klug’s Centris bees In 1810, Klug proposed Ptilotopus as a new genus, including in it a single species that he described simultaneously. The species is currently considered valid, but the genus was later downgraded and included as a subgenus of Centris. Fig 2. Data labels. A. Centris zonalis Dominique, 1898 (lectotype ♀︎). B. Centris lyngbyei Jensen- Haarup, 1908 (lectotype ♂). European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 12 A couple of years before that publication, Klug (1808) published an article on sexual dimorphism in Hymenoptera, citing some examples in several genera of wasps, ants and bees. Among his comments on species of Centris, he cited “byssina”, a species of Hemisia that had previously been named by the German entomologist and zoologist Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger (1775–1813) but that he never formally described. Klug provided some morphological features that allow the identification of this species and the sex of the specimens he studied, resulting in its formal description. The species remained unnoticed during all these years, until a visit to the ZMB where I studied the specimens described by Klug, which had previously been recognized as such by another entomologist. The researcher designated one of the specimens as lectotype, but unfortunately, the nomenclatural act was never published. To formalize this action and avoid future taxonomic problems, this designation is published here, acknowledging the previous work carried out by him. Centris americana (Klug, 1810) Ptilotopus americanus Klug, 1810: 31. Type data This species was described based on an undetermined number of males from an unknown locality, according to Moure et al. (2007), “America”. A male studied by Klug from Cayenne was found at ZMB being here designated lectotype. The specimen bears the following data label: [green label] Cajen. Dy [handwritten]\ [red label] Type [printed]\ Centris americana [handwritten] 1907 Friese det. [printed]\ [white label with lateral red margins] LECTOTYPE [printed] Ptilotopus americanus Klug, 1810 [handwritten] desig. Melo, 2016 [printed\ http://coll.mfn-berlin.de/u/58fa3d [QR code] (ZMB). As can be seen, this specimen was already labeled as lectotype, however, this designation has remained unpublished until now. Type locality French Guiana: Cayenne. Centris byssina (Klug, 1808) Fig. 3 Megilla byssina Illiger, 1806: 142 (nom. nud.). Hemisia byssina Klug, 1808: 57 (nomen oblitum, new junior synonym of C. trigonoides Lepeletier, 1841 (nomen protectum)). Type data This species was described based on an undetermined number of males. At least part of the type series is housed at ZMB. The lectotype is here designated bearing the following data label (Fig. 3): [green label with black lower margin] Bah. Gom [handwritten]\ [white yellowish label] 1600 [printed]\ [white yellowish label] Zool. Mus. Berlin [printed in blue ink]\ [white label with red lateral margins] LECTOTYPE [printed] Hemisia byssina Klug, 1808 [handwritten] desig. Melo, 2016 [printed]\ http://coll.mfn-berlin.de/u/58fa36 [QR code] (ZMB). Type locality Brazil. http://coll.mfn-berlin.de/u/58fa3d http://coll.mfn-berlin.de/u/58fa36 VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 13 Comment This species was described several years earlier than Centris trigonoides. However, in this case the priority principle applies (ICZN 1999: article 23.9.1). This allows for prevailing usage of names when the “senior synonym has not been used as a valid name after 1899” (condition 23.9.1.1) and the junior synonym has been used “in at least 25 works, published by at least 10 authors in the immediately preceding 50 years and encompassing a span of not less than 10 years” (condition 23.9.1.2). Under this circumstance, both conditions are met because the name ‘byssina’ was cited only once by Illiger (1906) as “Megilla byssina” (nom. nud .) and then it was completely forgotten, while C. trigonoides is by far one of the most cited Centridine bees (Vivallo 2019a). Considering this, and according to the article 23.9, C. trigonoides must be considered the valid name of the species (nomen protectum), and C. byssina one of its junior synonyms (nomen oblitum). Amédée Louis Michel Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau and Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville Amédée Louis Michel Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau (1770‒1845) was a famous French entomologist, specialist of Hymenoptera and one of the pioneers in the study of Centris bees (Vivallo 2019a). After his death in 1845, his collection began to be fragmented (Casolari & Casolari Moreno 1980). One part was sent to the MNHN, and the other one was split and subsequently absorbed by the collections of the English entomologist and archaeologist John Obadiah Westwood (1805‒1893) in the United Kingdom, and of the French-Italian entomologist and naturalist Massimiliano Spinola (1780‒1857) in Italy (Baker 1994). Lepeletier died in France, aged 74. Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville (1775‒1858) was a French entomologist and specialist of Orthoptera. Audinet-Serville was a friend of Lepeletier and they both contributed in the publication of the “Encyclopédie Méthodique. Histoire Naturelle. Entomologie, ou Histoire Naturelle des Crustacés, des Arachnides et des Insectes”. He passed away in France, aged 82. Fig. 3. Hemisia byssina Klug, 1808 (lectotype ♂). A. Frontal view. B. Habitus, lateral view. Scale bars: A = 0.5 mm; B = 2 mm. European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 14 Lepeletier & Serville’s Centris bee Although Lepeletier described several dozen species of Centris, only one of them was done in partnership with Serville. They included their new species in Ptilotopus, considered at that time to be a different group from Centris and not one of its subgenera as it is today. Centris americanorum (Lepeletier & Serville, 1825) Ptilotopus americanorum Lepeletier & Serville, 1825: 239 (junior synonym of C. americana). Type data This species was proposed based on at least two males collected at an undetermined locality. Moure & Seabra (1960) found two of those specimens in the Spinola collection at MSNT, designating one of them as lectotype, but without providing additional information about its data labels. Unfortunately, the primary type of this species was not available during the preparation of this research. Type locality Unknown. Guillaume-Antoine Olivier Guillaume-Antoine Olivier was a French naturalist and entomologist. He was a very active collector and made a lot of expeditions, he was a very close friend of the Danish naturalist Johan Christian Fabricius, who in 1804 described the genus Centris. Olivier died in France, aged 58. Olivier’s Centris bee Olivier proposed several new species of bees, but only one in Centris. The identity of this species was misunderstood, and it was only fixed recently by Vivallo (2016). Centris dimidiata (Olivier, 1789) Apis dimidiata Olivier, 1789: 64. Type data Olivier described this species based on an undetermined number of females collected in French Guiana. The material studied by him is currently lost; therefore Vivallo (2016) designated a neotype in order to resolve taxonomic issues related to a couple of species that were proposed as junior synonyms. Unfortunately, the neotype female was subsequently destroyed. It had the following data label: HYMNRJ 000312 [printed]\ [black-rimmed white yellowish label] COLEÇÃO CAMPOS SEABRA [printed]\ [black-rimmed white yellowish label] PORTO VELHO Guaporé BRASIL XI-1954 M. Alvarenga, Dente, Pereira e Werner [printed]\ [red label] Neotype Apis dimidiata Olivier, 1789 F. Vivallo des., 2016 [printed] (MNRJ†). Type localities Original type locality: French Guiana, Cayenne. Neotype locality: Brazil, Rondônia State, Porto Velho. Jean Pérez Jean Pérez (1833‒1914) was a French zoologist and entomologist. He worked as professor of zoology at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Bordeaux, France, and was honorary member of the Société VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 15 entomologique de France (Anonymous 1916). During his professional career, he focused on the study of solitary and social bees. Pérez passed away in France, aged 80. Pérez’s Centris bees Pérez published more than 100 articles and notes, two of them containing Centris bees. The first paper was published in 1905 and it contained the description of two new species from Mexico. The second article was published in 1911 and contained the description of a new species from northern Chile. Centris confinis Pérez, 1905 Centris confinis Pérez, 1905: 40 (junior synonym of C. nitida Smith, 1874). Type data This species was described based on an undetermined number of females. A single specimen of the type series was found at MNHN that was interpreted as “type” by Snelling (1984). This assumption can be considered a valid lectotype designation (ICZN 1999: article 74.6). The specimen bears the following data label: TYPE [printed in red]\ Centris confinis J. P. [handwritten]\ Type [handwritten with blue ink] (MNHN). Type locality “Mexique?”. Centris rhodophthalma Pérez, 1911 Centris rhodophthalma Pérez, 1911: 55–59. Type data This species was described based on an undetermined number of females collected in Chañarcillo, northern Chile by the Chilean naturalist Carlos Emilio Porter (1867‒1942). A single female was found at MNHN that was cited by Moure et al. (2007) as holotype. However, I here consider it as syntype, following the recommendation 73F of the ICZN (1999). This specimen is here designated lectotype, and it bears the following data label: Chañarcillo [handwritten]\ TYPE [printed in red]\ Centris rhodophthalma J P [handwritten] (MNHN) (Fig. 4A). Type locality Chile: Atacama Region, Chañarcillo. Centris transversa Pérez, 1905 Fig. 4B Centris transversa Pérez, 1905: 39–40. Type data This species was proposed based on specimens of both sexes collected by the French naturalist Léon Diguet (1859‒1926) in Tehuacán, Puebla State, Mexico. Diguet traveled to Mexico where he worked as a chemical engineer. During this stay, as well as following six trips he made to this country, he collected specimens for the MNHN. One male and two females of the type series are found in that collection being European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 16 one of these latter designated here lectotype. The female has the following data label: [black-rimmed light green label] MUSEUM PARIS MEXIQUE ÉTAT DE PUEBLA ENV. DE TEHUACAN L. DIGUET 1903 [printed]\ [black-rimmed] Centris [printed] (Hemisiella) transversa Pérez ♀︎ [handwritten] det. Snelling [printed] ’83 [handwritten]\ [light blue label] LECTOTYPE Centris transversa Pérez, 1905 des. F. Vivallo, 2017 [printed] (MNHN) (Fig. 4 B). Paralectotype female with the following data label: [black-rimmed light green label] MUSEUM PARIS MEXIQUE ÉTAT DE PUEBLA ENV. DE TEHUACAN L. DIGUET 1903 [printed]\ Centris transversa Typus Perez [handwritten]\ Centris nitida Sm. R. du Burpron det. [handwritten]\ TYPE [printed in red] (MNHN). Paralectotype male with the following data label: [black-rimmed light green label] MUSEUM PARIS MEXIQUE ÉTAT DE PUEBLA ENV. DE TEHUACAN L. DIGUET 1903 [printed]\ [black-rimmed] Centris [printed] (Hemisiella) transversa Pérez ♂ [handwritten] det. Snelling [printed] ’83 [handwritten]\ [light blue label] PARALECTOTYPE Centris transversa Pérez, 1905 des. F. Vivallo, 2017 [printed] (MNHN). At NHMUK was found a female which apparently belonged to the type species of this species. However, it was collected in 1904 and not in 1903, as Pérez cited explicitly the year of collection of his specimens; therefore, here it is not interpreted as a syntype. That exemplar has the following data label: Mexique, Tehuacan L. Diguet 1904 [handwritten]\ Schulz Coll. 1908-157. [printed]\ Centris transversa Typus ♀︎ Pérez [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed red label] spec. typ. [printed]\ [red-rimmed circular label] Type [printed]\ B.M. TYPE HYM. [printed] 17B905 [handwritten] (NHMUK). Fig. 4. Data labels. A. Centris rhodophthalma Pérez, 1911 (lectotype ♀︎). B. Centris transversa Pérez, 1905 (lectotype ♀︎). VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 17 Type locality Mexico: Puebla State, Tehuacán. Josef Anton Maximilian Perty Josef Anton Maximilian Perty (1804–1884) was a German naturalist and entomologist. He was a professor of zoology at Ludwig-Maximilian-Universität München, and at Universität Bern, Switzerland (Hess 1887). Throughout his professional life, Perty published numerous articles on a wide variety of topics. All of them testify of a strictly scientific education, a wide knowledge of literature and a keen capacity for observation; but unfortunately, especially in his later years, also of a tendency towards miraculous and spiritualistic visions (Hess 1887). Perty passed away in Bern, aged 80. Perty’s Centris bees Perty described a single species in Centris that was later transferred to Eufriesea Cockerell, 1908 (Apidae: Euglossini), and three species in Xylocopa Latreille, 1802 (Apidae: Xylocopini) that were later transferred to Centris. The type specimens of these species were collected by the German naturalist Johann Baptist von Spix (1781–1826) and the German doctor, botanist and anthropologist Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius (1794–1868) during an expedition to Brazil. Centris flavicrus (Perty, 1833) Xylocopa flavicrus Perty, 1833: 150 (junior synonym of C. xanthocnemis). Type data Perty described this species based on an unknown number of specimens of an undetermined sex. The type material of this species, which corresponds to females, is currently lost. Type locality Brazil: Piauí State. Centris moerens (Perty, 1833) Xylocopa moerens Perty, 1833: 150. Type data As in the previous case, Perty did not indicate how many specimens he studied to describe this species. The lectotype female was designated by Moure (1960b, by inference of a holotype, ICZN 1999: article 74.6) and it has the following data label: [black-rimmed green label] Brasilien Coll. Perty [handwritten]\ [green-rimmed white yellowish label with green horizontal lines] 4. Brasil. X. moerens Perty [handwritten]\ [pink label] Holotypus [printed] Xylocopa moerens Perty ♀︎ Diller 1989 [handwritten] Zoologische Staatssammig. München [printed] (ZSM) (Fig. 4 A). Type locality Brazil: Minas Gerais State. Centris xanthocnemis (Perty, 1833) Xylocopa xanthocnemis Perty, 1833: 150. European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 18 Type data This species was proposed based on an undetermined number of males collected in Piauí State. The lectotype was designated by Moure (1960b, by inference of a holotype, ICZN 1999: article 74.6) and it bears the following data label: [black-rimmed green label] Piauhy. Brasilien. Coll. Perty. [handwritten]\ [green-rimmed white yellowish label with green horizontal lines] 5. Bras. Piauhy X. xanthocnemis Pty. [handwritten]\ [pink label] Lectotypus [printed] Xylocopa xanthocnemis Perty ♀︎ Diller 1989 [handwritten] Zoologische Staatssammlg. München [printed] (ZSM) (Fig. 4B). Type locality Brazil: Piauí State. Massimiliano Spinola Massimiliano Spinola was a French-Italian doctor, naturalist and entomologist. He descended from a rich and powerful family from Italy, with lands in Europe and South America, from which he received many insects. Thanks to his wealth, Spinola made extensive purchases of insect collections (Gestro 1915), which allowed him to make important contributions to the taxonomy of the orders Coleoptera, Hemiptera and Hymenoptera. He passed away in Tassarolo, Italy, aged 77. Spinola’s Centris bees Spinola proposed six new species in Hemisia, at that time considered the valid name for Centris. According to Moure et al. (2007) the primary types of four of those species are housed at MSNT, but unfortunately, they were not available during the preparation of this article. Centris bombiformis (Spinola, 1841) Hemisia bombiformis Spinola, 1841: 148–149 (junior synonym of C. americana). Type data This species was described based on a female specimen. Moure & Seabra (1960) mentioned a male from Pará State, Brazil, housed at MNHN as the probable type of this species, which disagrees with the information provided by Spinola. However, that specimen was not found at MNHN, despite active search. The current condition and depository of the primary type is unknown. Type locality French Guiana: Cayenne. Centris chilensis (Spinola, 1851) Hemisia chilensis Spinola, 1851: 167. Type data Spinola described this species using an undetermined number of females collected in the Coquimbo mountain range, Chile. The whereabouts of the syntypes are unknown. According to Zanella (2002), they are also probably housed at MSNT (not examined). Type locality Chile: Coquimbo Region. VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 19 Centris laticincta (Spinola, 1841) Hemisia laticincta Spinola, 1841: 148. Type data Spinola proposed this species using two females from French Guiana. The syntypes are at MSNT (not examined). Type locality French Guiana: Cayenne. Centris leprieuri (Spinola, 1841) Hemisia leprieuri Spinola, 1841: 146–147 (junior synonym of C. decolorata Lepeletier, 1841). Type data This species was based on a single female collected in Cayenne, French Guiana. The holotype is housed at MSNT (not examined). Type locality French Guiana: Cayenne. Centris nigerrima (Spinola, 1851) Hemisia nigerrima Spinola, 1851: 167. Fig. 5. Data labels. A. Xylocopa moerens Perty, 1833 (lectotype ♀︎). B. Xylocopa xanthocnemis Perty, 1833 (lectotype ♂). European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 20 Type data This species was described based on specimens of both sexes collected in northern Chile. The syntypes are at MSNT (not examined). Type locality Chile: Coquimbo Region, Coquimbo. Centris pyropyga (Spinola, 1841) Hemisia pyropyga Spinola, 1841: 148 (junior synonym of C. nobilis Westwood, 1840). Type data Spinola described this species using a single female specimen. The holotype is currently housed at MSNT (not examined). Type locality French Guiana: Cayenne. Embrik Strand Embrik Strand (1876–1947) was a Norwegian botanist, entomologist, arachnologist and naturalist. Between 1901 and 1903, he worked as curator in the Museum of Zoology of the Universitetet i Kristiania, currently Universitetet i Oslo (University of Oslo), Norway. Later he moved to Germany to continue his studies in zoology. In Norway, Strand worked at different museums and universities until 1923, when he moved to Latvia. There he worked as professor of zoology at the Rīgas Universitāte, currently Latvijas Universitāte (University of Latvia) (Natvig 1944). Specimens of the Strand’s collection can be found in the Zoological Museum of the University of Oslo, and in the ZMB. Strand passed away in Riga, Latvia, aged 71. Strand’s Centris bee Strand described a single taxon in Centris, the variety C. sponsaasuncionis Strand, 1910. The description was based on specimens collected by the Hungarian pharmacist, biologist, botanist and researcher János Dániel Anisits (1856‒1911). Anisits migrated to Paraguay after he graduated as a pharmacist in Budapest (Vivallo 2020d). In this country he worked actively, collecting biological material and discovering several new species, mainly plants (Magyarország és Latin-Amerika 2019). This variety remained forgotten until it was cited by Moure et al. (2007) as junior synonym of C. sponsa Smith, 1854. Despite the similarity between them, they seem to be different species. Here, it is proposed to withdraw C. sponsa asuncionis from the synonymy of C. sponsa, revalidate it and raise it to species level. Centris asuncionis Strand, 1910 nom. rev. Centris sponsa var. asuncionis Strand, 1910: 521–522. Type data Strand proposed this variety based on several specimens of both sexes collected in the cities of Asunción and Sapucai, in SE Paraguay. Two males and one female of the type series were found at ZMB, the latter VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 21 being designated lectotype. The female specimen bears the following data label: [black-rimmed white yellowish label] Asuncion, Paraguay J.D. Anisits [printed] Villa Morra 19.II.06 [handwritten]\ Centris sponsa var. asuncionis m. [handwritten] Strand det. [printed]\ [black-rimmed red label] Type [printed]\ [white label with lateral red margins] LECTOTYPE [printed] Centris sponsa asuncionis Strand, 1910 [handwritten] desig. Melo, 2016 [printed]\ http://coll.mfn-berlin.de/u/58fa33 [QR code] (ZMB). Paralectotype male with the following data label: Asuncion, Paraguay J.D. Anisits [printed] 10.II.06 [handwritten]\ Centris sponsa v. asuncionis m. [handwritten] Strand det. [printed]\ [white label with lateral yellow margins] PARALECTOTYPE [printed] Centris sponsa asuncionis Strand, 1910 [handwritten] desig. Melo, 2016 [printed] (ZMB). Paralectotype male with the following data label: Asuncion, Paraguay J. D. Anisits [printed] Sapucay XII.04 [handwritten]\ [black-rimmed red label] Type [printed]\ Centris sponsa v. asuncionis m. [handwritten] Strand det. [printed] (ZMB). The lectotype and one paralectotype were previously labeled as such, but those designations remained unpublished. I agree with that interpretation and maintain both specimens as such. Type locality Paraguay: Distrito Capital, Asunción (Villa Mora). Arthur Louis Marie Joseph Vachal Best known as Joseph Vachal (1838–1911), he was a French notary, politician, entomologist, and the 5 th most prolific describer ever of new bee taxa (Rasmussen 2012). Thanks to his contact with the French entomologist and carcinologist Eugène Louis Bouvier (1856‒1944), former chair of entomology at the MNHN, Vachal started working at the Museum, deciding that after his death, his entire entomological collection would be donated to that institution (Rasmussen 2012). He passed away in Argentat, France, at the age of 72. Vachal’s Centris bee Vachal described Centris autrani Vachal, 1904 based on specimens collected by the French naturalist Gustave-Adolphe Baer (1839‒1918) between 1902 and 1903 in northern Argentina. The name of this species was in homage of his friend and colleague the Austrian botanist Eugène John Benjamin Autran (1855‒1912), at that time, a senior official of the Ministry of Agriculture of Argentina. Centris autrani Vachal, 1904 Centris autrani Vachal, 1904: 16 (junior synonym of C. flavohirta Friese, 1899). Type data Vachal described this species based on two females and one male from Argentina and one female from Arica, Chile. Apparently, this type series was composed by at least two species, because C. autrani (= C. flavohirta) does not occur in Chile (Vivallo 2020b). Unfortunately, the female from Chile was not found during the preparation of this paper. The rest of the type series, including the lectotype male designated by Zanella (2002) is housed at MNHN. The specimen bears the following data label: [yellowish label] ARGENTINE PROV. TUCUMAN LARA 4000M G. A. BAER, 2-1903 [printed]\ [yellowish label] MUSEUM PARIS [printed] Tucuman A. Baer 1903 [handwritten]\ [yellowish label] Centris autrani 1903 n. sp J. Vachal [handwritten]\ [red label] TYPE [printed]\ [white label] LECTOTYPE Centris autrani Vachal F. Zanella, 2002 [printed] (MNHN). European Journal of Taxonomy 864: 1–27 (2023) 22 Despite Vachal mentioning only four specimens in the original description, another six males with the same original label of Baer were found at MNHN. Those specimens were labeled as paralectotypes by Zanella (2002). Type locality Argentina: Tucumán Province, Lara. John Obadiah Westwood John Obadiah Westwood (1805‒1893) was an English entomologist, archaeologist and the first appointed curator of the Hope Entomological Collections at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (Anonymous 1893). Westwood was one of the first entomologists with an academic position at the University of Oxford. He donated to that institution his insect collection which was later incorporated to the Hope Collection (Wandolleck 1894). Westwood died in Oxford, aged 87. Westwood’s Centris bee Westwood described a single species in Centris, based on an undetermined number of specimens that belonged to the collection of the British entomologist and naturalist Frederick William Hope (1797‒1862). In 1849, Hope gave his entire collection of insects to the University of Oxford (Baker 1994), which included the specimens studied by Westwood. Currently, it is formally known as the Hope Entomological Collections and it is held by the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (OUMNH). Centris nobilis Westwood, 1840 Centris nobilis Westwood, 1840: 263–264. Type data Westwood proposed this new species based on an undetermined number of females from an unknown locality in South America. Moure & Seabra (1960) studied a single female housed at OUMNH that they recognized as “type”. According to the article 74.6 (ICZN 1999), this assumption can be treated as a valid lectotype designation. The specimen bears the following data label: Centris nobilis Westw Nat Lib. Bees P 264 Pl 20 FI [handwritten] (OUMNH). Type locality “Locality doubtful; but in all probability South America”. Discussion The detailed transcription of the labels of the type material is essential to unequivocally recognize the specimen or specimens that were used to describe a certain species. In many cases, only through this procedure is it possible to detect inconsistencies between the information contained in the original descriptions and in the labels of the specimens considered primary types. The careful and detailed execution of this procedure allows confirmation of the status of the material, as well as the identity of a particular species. As is often the case with old descriptions, it is not always possible to know the number of specimens studied with only the information indicated in the original description, since often they only mention male and female characteristics in a general way. In these cases, it is prudent to consider such specimens as part of a type series and designate a lectotype. This procedure brings taxonomic stability by fixing the VIVALLO F., The Centris bees described by European entomologists 23 name of the species. Otherwise, complex problems may arise where the same name is being applied to more than one species as a result of a lack of extensive taxonomic work. This point is especially important in those cases in which the species were described from syntypes or composed of type series that ended up distributed in different collections. Among the old melittologists, perhaps the most exemplary case is that of Heinrich Friese, who described a large number of species of Centris bees mostly based on series of specimens deposited in several American and European collections (Vivallo 2019b, 2020c) using a very confusing and inaccurate labeling system (Rasmussen & Ascher 2008). Acknowledgments I want to thank Arturo Roig-Alsina (MACN), François Meurgey (MHNN), Agnièle Touret-Alby (MNHN), Lars Vilhelmsen (NHMD), David Notton (NHMUK), James Hogan (OUMNH), Michael Ohl (ZMB), and Stefan Schmidt (ZSM) for allowing me to visit and work in the collections under their care. I also thank Michael Engel for his help. This article is part of the SIGMA project nº21565 MN/UFRJ and the contribution number 64 from the HYMN. References Anonymous 1893. Professor John O. Westwood, M.A., F.L.S., &c. Geological Magazine 10 (3): 143. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0016756800168736 Anonymous 1916. Liste chronologique des travaux scientifiques de Jean Pérez (1833‒1914). Annales de la Société entomologique de France 85: 355–366. Baker D.B. 1994. Type material in the University Museum, Oxford, of bees described by Comte Amédée Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau and Pierre André Latreille (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). 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Revista Brasileira de Entomologia 46 (4): 435–488. https://doi.org/10.1590/s0085-56262002000400001 Manuscript received: 12 September 2022 Manuscript accepted: 28 November 2022 Published on: 27 March 2023 Topic editor: Tony Robillard Section editor: Gavin Broad Desk editor: Marianne Salaün Printed versions of all papers are also deposited in the libraries of the institutes that are members of the EJT consortium: Muséum national d’histoire naturelle, Paris, France; Meise Botanic Garden, Belgium; Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, Belgium; Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels, Belgium; Natural History Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark; Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, the Netherlands; Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC, Madrid, Spain; Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change, Bonn – Hamburg, Germany; National Museum of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic. https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v67i3.4968 https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-4766e2020020 https://doi.org/10.11606/1807-0205/2020.60.33 https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2020.618 https://doi.org/10.1590/s0085-56262002000400001