A new species of Andrena (Hymenoptera, Andrenidae) from northern Sardinia (Italy)

In this paper, a new species belonging to the Andrena pilipes / nigrospina complex, Andrena culucciae sp. nov., is described and illustrated from northern Sardinia (Italy). The species is distinguished by significant morphological characters, including the structure of the genital capsule and the translucent marginal zones of the tergites in males, as well as the coloration patterns of setae in females. These characters are discussed in detail and compared with those of closely related species.

Morphological evidence is complemented by COI barcode data, which supports the distinctiveness of the new taxon, although they do not fully resolve the phylogenetic relationships within the A. pilipes / nigrospina complex. Both Neighbor-Joining and Maximum Likelihood trees consistently place A. culucciae sp. nov. in a well-supported monophyletic clade. The COI data also reveal p-distance values between A. culucciae sp. nov. and both A. nigrospina Thomson, 1872 and A. pilipes Fabricius, 1781 that are higher than those observed between A. nigrospina and A. pilipes themselves, and show distinct haplotypes for all three taxa.

Furthermore, we argue that the Sardinian subspecies Andrena pilipes iliensis Alfken, 1938 is not valid, as it lacks significant morphological and molecular divergence from A. pilipes s. s. An identification key for the Andrena pilipes / nigrospina complex is provided. Ecological data on A. culucciae sp. nov. are also presented, suggesting a possible association with coastal dune habitats.

This highlights important conservation implications, given the ecological vulnerability of these environments in the Mediterranean region.