Xylocopa sp.

Order:Hymenoptera
Suborder:Apocrita
Superfamily:Apoidea
Family:Apidae
Subfamily:Xylocopinae
Tribe:Xylocopini
Genera:Xylocopa

Carpenter bees (the genus Xylocopa in the subfamily Xylocopinae) are large, hairy bees distributed worldwide. There are some 500 species of carpenter bee in 31 subgenera.[1] Their name comes from the fact that nearly all species except those in the subgenus Proxylocopa, which nest in the ground, build their nests in burrows in dead wood, bamboo, or structural timbers. Members of the related tribe Ceratinini are sometimes referred to as "Small Carpenter Bees".

Carpenter bees are traditionally considered solitary bees, though some species have simple social nests in which mothers and daughters may cohabit. However, even solitary species tend to be gregarious, and often several will nest near each other. It has been occasionally reported that when females cohabit, there may be a division of labor between them, where one female may spend most of her time as a guard within the nest, motionless and near the entrance, while another female spends most of her time foraging for provisions.[citation needed]
Carpenter bees make nests by tunneling into wood, vibrating their bodies as they rasp their mandibles against the wood, each nest having a single entrance which may have many adjacent tunnels. Carpenter bees do not eat wood. They discard the bits of wood, or re-use particles to build partitions between cells.

Fuente:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carpenter_bee

Rambla del cañar.Cartagena.07/2007