METALLIC GREEN CARPENTER BEES (Xylocopa (Lestis))
Aussie Bee > Native Bee Photo Gallery > Metallic Green Carpenter Bees
See video of carpenter bees in USA
The spectacular female Metallic Green Carpenter Bee, (Xylocopa (Lestis)) cuts nest burrows in the flower spikes of grass trees or other soft timbers. In this photograph a female Green Carpenter Bee is resting beside the entrance to her nest burrow in a dead sapling:
These Metallic Green Carpenter Bees, up to 17 mm long, are eyecatching and make a loud buzz as they fly. They love to visit native pea flowers such as Gompholobium.
Male Lestis Carpenter Bees have quite different colouring from the females, and they also have a coat of fur over their thorax. Ernst van der Veen contributed the following two beautiful photos of a male Carpenter Bee in flight, clearly showing their fur and striking colour markings:
And in this fabulous image, Corinne Jordan-Ivers captured a male and a female Metallic Green Carpenter Bee feeding together:
The Lestis Metallic Green Carpenter Bees belong to the family Apidae. They are found in eastern areas of Queensland and New South Wales, as well as on Kangaroo Island in South Australia.
See video of carpenter bees in USA
More Galleries of Native Bee Photos.
