South American Squash and Gourd Bees of the Genus Peponapis (Hymenoptera: Apoidea)

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Abstract
The squash and gourd bees of the genus Peponapis are represented in South America by 3 species which apparently are and presumably always have been dependent upon the pollen and nectar of Cucurbita (squashes, gourds, and pumpkins). This relationship and the present distribution of these bees in South America favor the hypothesis that prior to the advent of aboriginal man in the New World and his development of domestic species of Cucurbita there were at least 2 species of Cucurbita indigenous to South America. The apparent disappearance of the indigenous Cucurbita there suggests a close relationship to domestic Cucurbita and further suggests that some species of Cucurbita currently considered to be feral species (e.g., C. andreana) are perhaps ancestral to 1 or more of the 5 cultivated species of Cucurbita. These studies of the squash and gourd bees indicate that the development of domestic Cucurbita involves 2 centers of origin in South America and 3 in North America. A key, new records of occurrence, plant relationships, synonymical bibliographies, and redescriptions are provided for these bees. Changes in generic assignment and synonymy are Peponapis citrullina (n. comb., Tetralonia (Xenoglossa) peponis Friese, n. syn.), P. fervens (Melissodes catamarcensis Bertoni and Schrottky, n. syn.), P. melonis (n. comb.), and the generic assignment of P. gyrosa is questioned. Lectotypes are selected and designated for the nominal forms proposed by Friese as listed here.

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