Sawfly – Dolerus unicolor
Family Tenthredinidiae
Live adult sawflies photographed in the wild at northern Illinois locations.
I found this lovely sawfly as she doodled around in a weedy / grassy field in early April, before most insects have even thought about getting out and about. This family lays its eggs in a slit they cut in grass stems.
Sawfly larvae resemble caterpillars of more familiar butterflies and moths. Most of them are herbivorous, and many are important agricultural pests, being leaf miners and/or gall-forming.
Many adult sawflies are predators of other insects, and they are quite fearsome indeed – I have seen them devour small beetles in a matter of a few minutes.
I love the iridescent blue-green set against the bright orange of the thorax. I’m always happy to spot one of these rare harbingers of spring.
Tree Encyclopedia / North American Insects & Spiders
Online since 2002
