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Violet Carpenter Bee

Xylocopa violacea

Basic Information

Common name: Violet Carpenter Bee
Scientific name: Xylocopa violacea

Very shiny, blue-black, big dark wings.

Found in South England, moving north.

Classification

Bee TypeSolitary
StatusLess Common
Cuckoo StatusNon-cuckoo
DistributionLocalised
Tail ColourBlack Tail

Keynotes

  • First recorded in England in early 2000's

  • A large carpenter bee - largest solitary bee seen in the UK

  • Can be mistaken for a worn bumblebee

  • Collect pollen on hind legs

  • Females have strong jaws to burrow into wood

Nest Information

  • Wood, hollow stems

  • Overwinter as adults

Distribution

  • Southerly distribution in England and Wales, moving north

  • Habitat: gardens, scrubland, grassland, orchards

Castes

MALE

February
No Diagram
No Photo

  1. Black, boxy

  2. Blue-black, shiny

  3. Bkue-black, shiny

  4. Blue-black, shiny

Tail:Black Tail
Thorax:All Black
Abdomen:All Black
Head:Black Head, Boxy

FEMALE

February
No Diagram
No Photo

  1. Blue-black, boxy

  2. Blue-black, shiny

  3. Blue-black, shiny

  4. Blue-black, shiny

Tail:Black Tail
Thorax:All Black
Abdomen:All Black
Head:Black Head

Flower Preferences

Long tongue. Likes bowl and tubular flowers.

  • buddleia

  • lavender

  • runner beans

  • tree mallow

  • wisteria

  • spring flowering shrubs

🌼

Apples

Lavender

Lavender

Lavandula

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Sweetpeas