A Carpenter Bee Encounter at the Warzan Desert in Dubai

Its another busy day for the Carpenter Bee 

Truly engaged with the flower of the Sodom's Apple

The wonderful burst of desert blooms available for the Carpenter Bee

Look at the yellow thoracic overlay on this Carpenter Bee

The yellow pubescence on its thorax is characteristic for Xylocopa pubescens

Busy...Busy... Busy as a Bee (Carpenter Bee that is)

On my early morning expedition on a patch of desert in Warzan, Dubai, I was fascinated by the hovering, circling, landing and flight of  two species of Carpenter bees, the black Carpenter Bees (Xylocopa spp.) and the Canary Carpenter Bees (Xylocopa pubescens) on the blossoms of the Sodom Apple (Calotropis procera). These large bees tend to circle around the Sodom Apple before it lands, it will gather nectar for just a few seconds and then fly and circle again on the plant. I have to patiently wait and stay still, minimize my movement, wait for the bees to land on the blossoms and utilized those precious seconds to capture the "bee moment". 

The Black Carpenter Bees, Xylocopa spp, and Canary Carpenter Bees, Xylocopa pubescens (APIDAE)

The Black Carpenter Bees (Xylocopa spp.) are large and robust bees, with a shiny black, metallic sheen. Its thorax is covered with black hair and the dorsal side of its abdomen is glossy and bare. Females have a black head while the males have a white marking on its head and a dense bunch of hair on its hind legs. Their wings are shiny black. Females can grow up to 40mm. 

The Canary Carpenter Bees, Xylocopa pubescens are also large and robust bees. The females can grow up to 25mm and the males up to 18mm. The females have mainly black abdomen and the thorax is covered with a yellow hair. The males are more covered in yellow hair. Females have black compound eyes while the males have greehish-yellow eyes. Wings of females are shiny black and the male wings are speckled and lighter in color.  

Distribution of Carpenter Bees

The genus Xylocopa is distributed worldwide and there are around 500 species reported.

The Canary Carpenter Bees  are found in the Eastern Mediterranean, North Africa, South Asia, Spain and Greece in Europe and on the Middle East. The species tend to inhabit warm areas as it requires a minimum temperature of 18°C.

Biodynamics Notes

The Carpenter Bees got its name due to its nesting behavior, where all species burrow into wood,  bamboo or any hard plant materials. The fertilized females bore into the wood, excavates a tunnel to lay eggs. They do not eat wood. During nest construction, they discard the pieces of wood or re-use these pieces to make partitions for their cells. 

Carpenter bees are mainly solitary species. They do not live in large colonies like the honey bees and bumble bees. However, they tend to be gregarious and several nests are often located near each other. 

Carpenter bees are not as destructive to wood as termites, they cause only cosmetic and little damage. The female excavates new tunnels in wood for egg-laying or she enlarges or re-uses old nest. (Female resourcefulness at its best). It drills parallel galleries in dry wood, dead trees, wooden doors and windows of abandoned houses. It builds nesting cells by combining wood pulp with its saliva. Significant damage can occur when the same piece of wood are targeted year after year. Holes on the wood surface can trigger moisture intrusion which can result to wood rot and decay.  In the UAE, they are mainly observed outdoors, constructing their nests in Sodom Apple, Acacia trees and on date palms. 

The Carpenter Bees may be large, distracting, and the loud buzzing sound is quite disturbing but take note that the males are harmless and they do not have a stinger. The females are capable of stinging but are very docile and will not sting unless directly handled or provoked. 

These robust bees have short mouth parts and are major pollinators of numerous flowering plants.

So dear PMPs if they are not a direct threat to you and to your customers, please DO NOT KILL THESE BEES! Kindly allow them to pollinate the beautiful flowers and gather the needed nectar.

Observing these robust bees as they forage on the Sodom Apples blossoms in the warmth of the desert sun was quite an awesome treat. 

Awesome creatures! Awesome CREATOR! 

Thanks for your support and careful attention. 

If you need Pest Management Training, Technical Field Support, On-Line and On-Site Consultancy, please feel free to send me an email: odelon.reyes@gmail.com