Yellow-banded Carpenter Bee

Description:

This is a Xylocopa philippinensis Smith, 1854, a Yellow-banded Carpenter Bee endemic to the Philippines. Xylocopa Latreille, 1802, of family Apidae, subfamily Xylocopinae, tribe Xylocopini, commonly known as Carpenter Bees, are large bees distributed worldwide. Their name comes from the fact that nearly all species build their nests in burrows in dead wood, bamboo, or structural timbers. Carpenter bees are important pollinators on open-faced flowers, and are traditionally considered solitary bees, though some species have simple social nests in which mothers and daughters may cohabit.

Habitat:

Backyard garden, spotted on Duranta erecta - Golden Dewdrop flowers.

Notes:

Related spotting: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/163... Similar appearance with Xylocopa caffra, an African species: http://unsw.discoverlife.org/mp/20q?sear... Reference: http://ia700707.us.archive.org/6/items/c... http://www.yorku.ca/bugsrus/bee_tribes_o...