Biology:Xylocopa caerulea
| Xylocopa caerulea | |
|---|---|
| |
| Xylocopa caerulea from Penang. Museum specimen | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Apidae |
| Genus: | Xylocopa |
| Species: | X. caerulea
|
| Binomial name | |
| Xylocopa caerulea Fabricius, 1804
| |
Xylocopa caerulea, or the blue carpenter bee, is a species of carpenter bee.
Description
Xylocopa caerulea is a relatively large species, reaching an average size of 23 millimetres (0.91 in). The species is sexually dimorphic, with the thorax region of the females having striking blue color and the male's thorax looking more brownish green.[1] The sides of the abdomen and first abdominal segments are also covered by a similar, albeit finer and thinner coat of blue hairs.[2][3][4] The reflectance spectrum of the thorax of female Xylocopa caerulea has a broad band in the blue wavelength range, with a trough around 600 nm, indicating the presence of a pigment that strongly reduces reflection in the red wavelength range.[5]
Distribution
This species is widely distributed in Southeast Asia, India and Southern China.[6]
Behavior
Xylocopa caerulea will burrow into trees to make their nests. They usually are solitary, but sometimes multiple bees will share a common entry hole. They create honey which is mixed with pollen to create ambrosia or bee bread. This species will place the bee bread in a wooden chamber which they then lay their eggs on top of. The bee bread serves as a food source for their larvae. [1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Mylne, Lee (2025-04-10). "Journey to the heart of the outback with APT \range”" (in en-US). https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/travel/2025/04/journey-to-the-heart-of-the-outback-with-apt/.
- ↑ Bingham, Charles Thomas, and Claude Morley. Hymenoptera... Vol. 1. Taylor & Francis, 1897.
- ↑ Ospina, Mónica. "Abejas carpinteras (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopinae: Xylocopini) de la región neotropical." Biota Colombiana 1.3 (2012): 239-252.
- ↑ Anzenberger, Gustl (2010). "Ethological Study of African Carpenter Bees of the Genus Xylocopa (Hymenoptera, Anthophoridae)1". Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie 44 (4): 337–374. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0310.1977.tb01001.x. ISSN 0044-3573. PMID 563151.
- ↑ Stavenga, Doekele G. (2023). "Pigmentary colouration of hairy carpenter bees, genus Xylocopa". Journal of Experimental Biology 226 (5): jeb245368.
- ↑ "Untitled Document". http://vespa-bicolor.net/main/solitary-bees/xylocopa-caerulea.htm.
Further reading
- Ruggiero M. (project leader), Ascher J. et al. (2013). ITIS Bees: World Bee Checklist (version Sep 2009). In: Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life, 11 March 2013 (Roskov Y., Kunze T., Paglinawan L., Orrell T., Nicolson D., Culham A., Bailly N., Kirk P., Bourgoin T., Baillargeon G., Hernandez F., De Wever A., eds). Digital resource at www.catalogueoflife.org/col/. Species 2000: Reading, UK.
External links
- "Xylocopa caerulea". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=766651.
Wikidata ☰ Q2443469 entry
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