Biology
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Carpenter bees bore tunnels into wood to construct a
nest, which they provision with a mixture of pollen and nectar
sculptured into an elongate shape. This acts as a food source for their
developing larvae. A number of partitions (each containing a single
larva) may be constructed within the tunnel, the partitions are made out
of chewed wood.
Recorded on
flowers of: Aspalathus spinescens, Aspalathus vulnerans, Aspalathus
sp., Lebeckia sericea, Lobostemon trichotomus, Rafnia amplexicaulus,
Satyrium hallackii, Spartina sp., Tipuana tipu, Virgilia divaricata,
Virgilia oroboides, pea. Nests in: Protea sp., Widdringtonia sp.
Parasite: Synhoria sp. (Eardley & Urban, 2010). |
References
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Eardley, C.D. 1983.
A taxonomic revision of the genus
Xylocopa Latreille (Hymenoptera:
Anthophoridae) in southern Africa.
Entomology Memoir,
Department of Agriculture,
Republic of South Africa
58: 67pp.
Eardley, C & Urban, R. 2010. Catalogue
of Afrotropical bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Apiformes).
Zootaxa 2455: 1-548.
Michener, C.D. 2000. The Bees of the World. Johns Hopkins
University Press. 953 pp. |