GB: Anatolian Bee Hawkmoth
Macroglossa ducalis var. dentata Staudinger, 1887, Stettin. ent. Ztg 48: 66.Type locality: Aintab near Antiochia [Gaziantep, near Hatay, Turkey; however, the specimen label specifies 'Gjaurdagh' as the collection locality, which are the present-day Nur Daglari hills just north of Hatay].
(Taxonomic notes. (i) The descriptions and illustrations provided by Daniel (1932; 1939) of the Turkish H. fuciformis subsp. syra Daniel, 1939, (Mitt. münch. ent. Ges. 29: 94), initially indicated that it could be a form of Hemaris dentata. However, Daniel (1932) was of the opinion that it was closer to H. fuciformis, although the colour of the thorax and abdomen reminded him more of H. croatica. Danner, Eitschberger & Surholt (1998) treated syra as a good species, although they were uncertain of its exact status. Kitching & Cadiou (2000) compared H. syra, H. fuciformis and H. dentata from Turkey and concluded that syra probably represented the opposite sex of the sexually dimorphic H. dentata. With the capture of further specimens of both syra and H. dentata it is obvious that syra is not H. dentata.
(ii) For very good reasons, Hemaris dentata was originally described as a subspecies of Hemaris ducalis (Staudinger, 1887). Comparison of adult morphology and habitat preferences indicates a close relationship.)
Holarctic; western Palaearctic region. Pleistocene refuge: Monocentric -- Pontomediterranean subsection of the Mediterranean refuge.
Wingspan: 36--45mm. Intermediate in colour between H. fuciformis and H. croatica, but with male genitalia more closely resembling those of the former. Forewing cell undivided. A variable species, with the hyaline areas absent (i.e. scaled over) in some individuals; the abdominal pattern may approach that of H. fuciformis (de Freina, 1988).
Diurnal. A very local species, with one or two specimens turning up here and there in flower-rich mountain meadows at between 1000 and 2300m. Very similar in behaviour to H. croatica.
With the capture of further specimens it appears that this species was/is a denizen of the cedar (Cedrus) forests which used to occur along the mountains of southern Turkey and into Syria. The local nature of H. dentata may be the result of the destruction and fragmentation of these forests.
Univoltine; mid- to late July. The last two weeks of July at 1400--1700m (de Freina, 1988).
Unknown. Presumably overwinters in the pupal stage.
Hostplants. Unknown, but most probably Lonicera, the confirmed host of the closely related H. ducalis.
Unknown.
Southern Turkey (de Freina, 2012) as far west as the Toros Mountains. Confirmed localities in Turkey are the Nur Daglari (near Hatay), Ala Daglari (near Nigde) and Anamas Daglari (near Egridir) (de Freina, 1988), as well as Sihli (near Tekir, 1300-1700m), Palaz Dagi (near Antalya, 1300m;), Ilica (near Suleymanli), Nemrut Dagi (near Adiyaman, 1500-2100m;) and Harput (near Elazig, 1200m) (W. Hogenes, pers. comm.). Records from 'Syria' (Rothschild & Jordan, 1903) refer to what is now southern Turkey.
Extra-limital range. None.
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