''Anthidium scudderi'' is an

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

species of mason bee in the Megachilidae genus ''

Anthidium ''Anthidium'' is a genus of bees often called carder or potter bees, who use conifer resin, plant hairs, mud, or a mix of them to build nests. They are in the family Megachilidae which is cosmopolitan in distribution and made up of species that ...

''. The species is solely known from the late Eocene, Chadronian stage, Florissant Formation deposits in Florissant, Colorado, USA. ''Anthidium scudderi'' is one of only four extinct species of mason bees known from the fossil record, and with '' Anthidium exhumatum'', one of two species from the Florissant Formation.

History and classification

The species is known only a single fossil, the holotype, number "No. 2002", is a single specimen of indeterminate genus, originally part of the

Samuel Hubbard Scudder Samuel Hubbard Scudder (April 13, 1837 – May 17, 1911) was an American entomologist and paleontologist. He was a leading figure in entomology during his lifetime and the founder of insect paleontology in America. In addition to fossil insects, ...

collection as specimen "No. 11381". The additional specimen, along with the three ''A. exhumatum'' fossils are currently residing in the Museum of Comparative Zoology

paleoentomology The most recent understanding of the evolution of insects is based on studies of the following branches of science: molecular biology, insect morphology, paleontology, insect taxonomy, evolution, embryology, bioinformatics and scientific computing ...

collections at Harvard University. ''A. scudderi'' was first studied by Theodore Cockerell with his 1906

type description A species description is a formal description of a newly discovered species, usually in the form of a scientific paper. Its purpose is to give a clear description of a new species of organism and explain how it differs from species that have be ...

being published in the journal ''

Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology Bulletin or The Bulletin may refer to: Periodicals (newspapers, magazines, journals) * Bulletin (online newspaper), a Swedish online newspaper * ''The Bulletin'' (Australian periodical), an Australian magazine (1880–2008) ** Bulletin Debate, ...

''. The specific epithet "''scudderi''" was coined by Theodore Cockerell in honor of Samuel Scudder who collected the specimens at Florissant.

Description

The holotype of ''Anthidium scudderi'', while incomplete, is approximately in length but is missing up to of the abdomen tip. The body length and width is noted to probably be larger than in life due to crushing during fossilization. Both the head and thorax are black with possible light patterning, with a large lighter patch on the vertex, the clypeus mostly light, and the mesothorax with two possible light stripes. Though not definitive the light stripes may have been a reddish. The abdomen in contrast is light in tone, possibly yellow in life, with the posterior edges of each segment darkening into a distinct stripe. There are indications of a possible subbasal band running along the abdomen in the subdorsal region. Due to preservation the antennae and legs are not visible in the specimen. The general coloration is similar to the modern ''Anthidium bernardinum'', now a jr synonym of '' Anthidium placitum''. The dark colored forewings of ''A. scudderi'' are in length and notably hairy in the basal region. The

marginal cell Marginal may refer to: * ''Marginal'' (album), the third album of the Belgian rock band Dead Man Ray, released in 2001 * ''Marginal'' (manga) * '' El Marginal'', Argentine TV series * Marginal seat or marginal constituency or marginal, in poli ...

of the wing is larger than in the related ''Anthidium exhumatum''. Given the overall coloration and structure of the wings, both ''A. scudderi'' and ''A. exhumatum'' have been placed in the genus ''Anthidium''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anthidium Scudderi †scudderi Fossil taxa described in 1906 Eocene insects Fossil bee taxa Prehistoric insects of North America Natural history of Colorado Florissant Formation