Copoxyla

Taxonomy

Family: Apidae
Subfamily: Xylocopinae
Tribe: Xylocopini
Genus: Xylocopa
Subgenus: Copoxyla, Maa 1954
Common name: Carpenter bee

Background

Xylocopa (Copoxyla) are smaller bees, 10 – 15 mm in length, with brilliantly metallic integumentintegument:
a tough, protective outer layer
. Males have black pubescencepubescence:
short, fine hair
on the head, legs, and on the sides and underside of the thorax and abdomen. The pubescencepubescence:
short, fine hair
is slightly lighter at the top of the thorax. Females are similar in appearance to males but may have dark brown to black pubescencepubescence:
short, fine hair
. Their wings are a transparent dark brown with a strong violet iridescent color (Hurd and Moure 1963Hurd and Moure 1963:
Hurd, P.D. and J.S. Moure. 1963. A Classification of the Large Carpenter Bees (Xylocopine) (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). University of California Publications in Entomology (Vol. 29). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 365 pp.).

Diversity

Xylocopa (Copoxyla) includes 6 species (Hurd and Moure 1963Hurd and Moure 1963:
Hurd, P.D. and J.S. Moure. 1963. A Classification of the Large Carpenter Bees (Xylocopine) (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). University of California Publications in Entomology (Vol. 29). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 365 pp.; Warncke and Ruckteschellweg 1982Warncke and Ruckteschellweg 1982:
Warncke, K., Ruckteschellweg. 1982. Die Holzbienen des Vorderen Orients (Hym., Apidae). Linzer Biologische Beitraege. 14(1): 23-37.; Terzo and Rasmont 1997Terzo and Rasmont 1997:
Terzo, M., S. Iserbyt, and P. Rasmont. 2007. Reacute;vision des Xylocopinae (Hymenoptera: Apidae) de France et de Belgique. Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. 43(4): 445-491.).

Distribution

Xylocopa (Copoxyla) can be found around the Mediterranean, up to Slovakia and southwest Russia, and into the northern Middle East (Hurd and Moure 1963Hurd and Moure 1963:
Hurd, P.D. and J.S. Moure. 1963. A Classification of the Large Carpenter Bees (Xylocopine) (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). University of California Publications in Entomology (Vol. 29). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 365 pp.).

​Distribution map generated by Discover Life -- click on map for details, credits, and terms of use.

Host associations

Members of ­­­­­­Xylocopa (Copoxyla) are known to visit a wide variety of flowers but show a preference for the families Asteraceae, Fabaceae, and Lamiaceae (Terzo et al. 2007Terzo et al. 2007:
Terzo M., S. Iserbyt, and P. Rasmont. 2007. Reacute;vision des Xylocopinae (Hymenoptera: Apidae) de France et de Belgique. Annales de la Socieacute;teacute; Entomologique de France 43 (4): 445‒491.; Özbek 2013Ouml;zbek 2013:
Ouml;zbek, H. 2013. New Data on Large Carpenter-bees of Turkey with Considerations About Their Importance as Pollinators. Journal of Entomological Research Society 15(1): 79-89.).

Diagnostic characteristics

(modified from Hurd and Moure 1963Hurd and Moure 1963:
Hurd, P.D. and J.S. Moure. 1963. A Classification of the Large Carpenter Bees (Xylocopine) (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). University of California Publications in Entomology (Vol. 29). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 365 pp.).

• First submarginal cross vein strongly slanting.
• Scutellum scutellum:
  shield shaped plate behind scutum
  convexconvex:
  curved outward
  in profile.
• Male hind tibiatibia:
  the segment of the leg, between the femur and the tarsus
  with one apicalapical:
  near or at the apex or end of any structure
  tooth.
• Male basitibial platebasitibial plate:
  a small plate at the base of the hind tibia, like a kneecap
  simple.
• Male tegulategula:
  the usually oval, small shield-like structure carried at the extreme base of the wing where it attaches to the body
  with posterolateral third impunctateimpunctate:
  marked with punctures or pits
  , glabrous and shining.
• Male scutumscutum:
  the large segment on top of the thorax located between the wings and behind the head
  with discdisc:
  a generic term for the middle surface of a plate (usually in reference to an abdominal segment)
  narrowly impunctateimpunctate:
  marked with punctures or pits
  medially.
• Female mandiblemandible:
  bee teeth, so to speak, usually crossed and folded in front of the mouth
  tridentate.
• Female malar spacemalar space:
  the shortest distance between the base of the mandible and the margin of the compound eye
  short, with minimum length considerably less than half length of first flagellar segment.
• Female hind tibiatibia:
  the segment of the leg, between the femur and the tarsus
  with one apicalapical:
  near or at the apex or end of any structure
  tooth.
• Female basitibial platebasitibial plate:
  a small plate at the base of the hind tibia, like a kneecap
  bifid, with apexapex:
  end of any structure
  beyond basalbasal:
  originating at the foundation of a structure
  one-fourth of tibiatibia:
  the segment of the leg, between the femur and the tarsus
  .
• Female pygidial platepygidial plate:
  unusually flat area (a plate) surrounded by a ridge or line and sometimes sticking well off of the end of the bee; if present, found on the sixth upper abdominal segment in females, seventh in males
  narrow, parallel sided, and without subapicalsubapical:
  located just behind the apex of the segment or body part
  laterallateral:
  relating, pertaining, or attached to the side
  spines.

May be confused with

Xylocopa (Copoxyla) may be confused with the females of X. (Ctenoxylocopa) and X. (Rhysoxylocopa). Males can be distinguished by their simple basitibial platebasitibial plate:
a small plate at the base of the hind tibia, like a kneecap
and hind tibial with a single apicalapical:
near or at the apex or end of any structure
spine. Females can be distinguished by the absence of subapicalsubapical:
located just behind the apex of the segment or body part
laterallateral:
relating, pertaining, or attached to the side
spines on their pygidial platepygidial plate:
unusually flat area (a plate) surrounded by a ridge or line and sometimes sticking well off of the end of the bee; if present, found on the sixth upper abdominal segment in females, seventh in males
.

Nesting behavior

Xylocopa (Copoxyla) constructs its nests in dead and sometimes hollow stems. Some plant species they nest in include Artemisia arborescens, Asphodelus sp., Carduus sp., Helianthus annuus, Heracleum sphondylium, Peucedanum alsaticum, and Zea sp. (Hurd and Moure 1963Hurd and Moure 1963:
Hurd, P.D. and J.S. Moure. 1963. A Classification of the Large Carpenter Bees (Xylocopine) (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). University of California Publications in Entomology (Vol. 29). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 365 pp.; Gerling et al. 1989Gerling et al. 1989:
Gerling, D., H. H. W. Velthuis, A. Hefetz. 1989. Binomics of the Large Carpenter Bees of the genus Xylocopa . Ann. Rev. Entomol. 34: 163-190.).

Known invasives

In the early 1900s, a female specimen of ­­­­­­Xylocopa (Copoxyla) iris was collected in Brazil. This specimen could represent an unsuccessful introduction of the species to South America (Lucia et al. 2015Lucia et al. 2015:
Lucia, M., L.C. Villamil, and V.H. Gonzalez. 2015. A gynandromorph of Xylocopa augusti and an unusual record of X. iris from Brazil (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini). Journal of Melittology 53: 1-7.). Currently, there are no known established invasives populations.

References

Gerling, D., H. H. W. Velthuis, A. Hefetz. 1989. Binomics of the Large Carpenter Bees of the genus Xylocopa. Ann. Rev. Entomol. 34: 163-190.

Hurd, P.D. and J.S. Moure. 1963. A Classification of the Large Carpenter Bees (Xylocopine) (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). University of California Publications in Entomology (Vol. 29). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 365 pp.

Lucia, M., L.C. Villamil, and V.H. Gonzalez. 2015. A gynandromorph of Xylocopa augusti and an unusual record of X. iris from Brazil (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Xylocopini). Journal of Melittology 53: 1-7.

Michener, C.D. 2007. The Bees of the World (2nd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London, 953 pp.

Özbek, H. 2013. New Data on Large Carpenter-bees of Turkey with Considerations About Their Importance as Pollinators. Journal of Entomological Research Society 15(1): 79-89.

Terzo, M. and P. Rasmont. 1997. Révision des Xylocopa Latreille du sous-genre Copoxyla Maa des pays circum-méditerranéens (Hymenoptera, Apoidea). Bulletin de la Société Entomologique de France 102(4): 367-377.

Terzo, M., S. Iserbyt, and P. Rasmont. 2007. Révision des Xylocopinae (Hymenoptera: Apidae) de France et de Belgique. Ann. Soc. Entomol. Fr. 43(4): 445-491.

Warncke, K., Ruckteschellweg. 1982. Die Holzbienen des Vorderen Orients (Hym., Apidae). Linzer Biologische Beitraege. 14(1): 23-37.