![]() ![]() A few species bore holes in wood dwellings. They use wood bits to form partitions between the cells in the nest. In several species, the females live alongside their own daughters or sisters, creating a small social group. Xylocopa caerulea, the blue carpenter bee, engaged in nectar robbing Ecological significance virginica is by far the more widely distributed species. Three more species are primarily western in distribution, X. In the United States, two eastern species, Xylocopa virginica and X. Males of many species have much larger eyes than the females, which relates to their mating behavior. ![]() ![]() When closed, the bee's short mandibles conceal the labrum. The wing venation is characteristic the marginal cell in the front wing is narrow and elongated, and its apex bends away from the costa. Males of some species of carpenter bees have a white or yellow face, unlike bumblebees, while females lack the bare corbicula of bumblebees the hind leg is entirely hairy. Non-professionals commonly confuse carpenter bees with bumblebees the simplest rule of thumb for telling them apart is that most carpenter bees have a shiny abdomen, whereas bumblebee abdomens are completely covered with dense hair. The confusion of species arises particularly in the common names in India, for example, the common name for any all-black species of Xylocopa is bhanvra (or bhomora - ভোমোৰা - in Assamese), and reports and sightings of bhanvra or bhomora are commonly misattributed to a European species, Xylocopa violacea however, this species is found only in the northern regions of Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab, and most reports of bhanvra, especially elsewhere in India, refer to any of roughly 15 other common black Xylocopa species in the region, such as X. Males of some species differ confusingly from the females, being covered in greenish-yellow fur. Some differ only in subtle morphological features, such as details of the male genitalia. Many species in this enormous genus are difficult to tell apart most species are all black, or primarily black with some yellow or white pubescence. He derived the name from the Ancient Greek xylokopos/ξυλοκὀπος "wood-cutter". The French entomologist Pierre André Latreille described the genus in 1802. Carpenter bees rarely nest in painted or varnished wood. For these concerns, though, there is an easy fix - a quick coat of paint. Additionally, they leave defecation streaks below their nests. These bees nest in wooden structures, like decks, siding, and wooden window trim, and can weaken the structural integrity of the wood. Additionally, carpenter bees can be viewed as pests. They have been known to "rob" nectar from sage (Salvia spp.), beard-tongue (Penstemon spp.), rabbiteye blueberry (Vaccinium virgatum), and faba bean (Vicia faba). These bees are known nectar-robbers - for some long, tubular flowers the bees' bodies are too large to fit inside and they will cut a slit at the bottom of the corolla and take nectar without coming into contact with the flower's pollen. However, not everyone appreciates carpenter bees for the pollination services they provide. Carpenter bees typically visit flowers that are large, open-faced with abundant nectar and pollen, ephemeral day-bloomers, pale or saturated in color, and that have a fresh odor, anthers specialized for pollen collection by bees, and corollas with strong walls. They often forage in the early morning and are buzz pollinators - meaning they use vibrations, or sonication, to release pollen grains from the flower's anthers. Examples of plants pollinated by carpenter bees include eggplant (Solanum melongena), tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), passion fruit (Passiflora edulis) and other species in that genus, cucurbits (Cucurbita spp.), cassias (Cassia spp.), Carolina jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens), cigar orchid (Cyrtopodium punctatum), bee balm (Monarda spp.), aromatic sumac (Rhus aromatica), and wild lupine (Lupinus perennis). Carpenter bees are generalist foragers and are known to pollinate both crop and wild plants. ![]()
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