Overview
- Megachile (Hackeriapis) lucifer is officially published in the Journal of Hymenoptera Research, confirming a new native bee species from Western Australia’s Goldfields.
- Specimens were collected during a 2019 survey of the critically endangered Marianthus aquilonarius in the Bremer Range between Norseman and Hyden.
- DNA barcoding showed no match in existing databases or museum collections, marking the first new member of this bee subgroup described in more than two decades.
- Only females bear tiny upward-pointing facial horns of about 0.9 millimeters, with researchers noting their function is untested and offering hypotheses without firm conclusions.
- Scientists warn the bee’s limited known range and local mining and climate pressures elevate conservation concerns, urging broader native-bee surveys and a national barcode library.