Family: Apidae
Subfamily: Xylocopinae
Tribe: Ceratinini
Genus: Ceratina Latreille, 1802
Subgenus: Hirashima Terzo and Pauly, 2001
Common name: small carpenter bees
Ceratina (Hirashima) have dull black coloration and deeply punctured integument (Eardley et al. 2010). The body length can be between 5–8.5 mm (Friese 1905).
(modified from Pauly et al. 2001; Michener 2007; Eardley et al. 2010)
Ceratina (Hirashima) resembles Ceratina (Ctenoceratina) in their strongly punctured black integument, spine on hind tibia, and keel or protuberance on T6. C. (Hirashima) can be distinguished by the lack of the spine-like tergal and sternal setae that are present in C. (Ctenoceratina) (Michener 2007; Pauly et al. 2001).
Ceratina (Hirashima) have been observed visiting flowers from the following genera: Asystasia (Acanthaceae), Lantana (Verbenaceae), Lobelia (Campanulaceae), Ipomoea (Convolvulaceae), and Portulacca (Portulacaceae) (Pauly et al. 2001).
Ceratina (Hirashima) nyassensis has been known to make nests in hollow and dry stems, with only two to three cells per stem (Pauly et al. 2001).
Ceratina (Hirashima) contains nine described species and likely several more undescribed species (Eardley et al. 2010).
There are no known invasives.
The subgenus Hirashima ranges from Tanzania and Nigeria, and south to South Africa, Madagascar, and the islands of Seychelles (Michener 2007).
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