Common Sawflies

Family Tenthredinidae

Larch sawfly (Pristiphora erichsonii). Photo:Stephanie Boucher

The larvae are external feeders on foliage of various trees and shrubs, some are borers in twigs and fruit, some are gall-makers and a few are leaf miners. Some species are very destructive causing extensive defoliation of trees. The adults are small to medium wasp-like sawflies, usually black with a colour pattern of green, brown, yellow, red or white. The two sexes are differently coloured in many species. They can be distinguished from other sawflies by the number of antennal segments, between 7 and 11.