Insects abroad : being a popular account of foreign insects, their structure, habits, and transformations . WOOD-BURKOWING BEES. 519 On Plate X., Fig. 3, is shown a very handsome Brazilian bee,named Centris denudans. The abdomen of this insect is velvet black, and the thorax iscovered with dense orange hair. The wings are glossed withblue, and the hind legs are clothed with very long black is a British genus named Meleda, which is closely alliedto Centris. The Melecta is a parasite insect, and Mr. F. Smithhas bred numbers of them from the nests of the well-knownAnthophora. Another s
Insects abroad : being a popular account of foreign insects, their structure, habits, and transformations . WOOD-BURKOWING BEES. 519 On Plate X., Fig. 3, is shown a very handsome Brazilian bee,named Centris denudans. The abdomen of this insect is velvet black, and the thorax iscovered with dense orange hair. The wings are glossed withblue, and the hind legs are clothed with very long black is a British genus named Meleda, which is closely alliedto Centris. The Melecta is a parasite insect, and Mr. F. Smithhas bred numbers of them from the nests of the well-knownAnthophora. Another species of the same genus, Centris Jiavopicta, is. Fig. 284.—Centris flavopicta.(Brown and yellow.) Euglossa diraidiata.(Black and white.) shown in the accompanying illustration. The abdomen is yellow,crossed with bars of dark brown, and the thorax is dark brown,relieved by a greyish white pile. The brushes of the hind pairof legs are yellow. The name Xylocopa literally signifies a wood-cutter, and is 520 INSECTS AISKOAP. given to a genus of bees in consequence of their power of bur-rowing into wood. They are spread over all the wanner por-tions of the earth, but no species has as yet been found toinhabit England. The present example is a native of SouthernAfrica, and, as is often the case among insects, the colours of thetwo sexes are very different. The male is covered with yellowishorange hair, and has transparent wings, while the female is black,varied with whitish grey hair, and her wings are black, with ablue gloss. In the illustration the upper figure represents themale, and the lower the female.
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectinsects, bookyear1883
