| CARPENTER BEES IN GENERAL |
| Xylocopa generally resemble bumble
bees in size and somewhat in color, being black, metallic bluish or
greenish black, or purplish blue. Some males have yellowish areas on the
face. Both sexes may have pale or yellowish pubescence on the thorax,
legs, or abdomen, but these hairs are not as abundant or as intensely
colored as in bumble bees. Large carpenter bees are readily
distinguished from
bumble bees
primarily by the absence of pubescence on the dorsum of the abdomen,
which is somewhat shiny. They also lack a malar space (present in bumble
bees), and the triangular second submarginal cell. The two species of
Xylocopa which occur in Florida are the only species in the eastern
United States, namely X. micans Lepeletier and X. virginica
(Linnaeus). |
| -information provided by edis.ifas.ufl.edu |
| WHERE FOUND |
| Dry, structural coniferous woods as
nesting sites. Magnolia planks and deciduous woods used in fence
railings. X. virginica selects nesting sites in well-lighted
areas where the wood is not painted or covered with bark. Two
generations per year with broods in February-March and during the
summer. Bees were active from November to January and from April to
summer. . |
| -information provided by edis.ifas.ufl.edu |
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