Ametastegia albipes

Recorded widely across England and Wales north to Cumbria and Yorkshire (Musgrove, 2023).

Ametastegia albipes has an entirely black abdomen and reddish-yellow hind femurs. The tegulae and usually the hind margin of the pronotum are white. The legs are yellow for the most part but the trochanters and coxae are marked with white and the dark of the hind tarsi continues onto the apex of the hind tibia.

Larvae are thought to feed on aspen and docks.

Jump to other Ametastegia species

Size: 5 - 6mm

GB IUCN Status: Least Concern
GB Rarity Status: None

Distribution: England, Wales, Ireland

Flight period: bi- or multivoltine, May to June, August

Plant associations: Possibly Populus tremula (aspen) and Rumex spp. (docks)

References:

Benson, R.B., 1952. Handbooks for the Identification of British Insects. Hymenoptera, Symphyta, Vol 6, Section 2(a-c), Royal Entomological Society, London

Liston A, Knight G, Sheppard D, Broad G, Livermore L (2014) Checklist of British and Irish Hymenoptera - Sawflies, ‘Symphyta’. Biodiversity Data Journal 2: e1168. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.2.e1168

Musgrove, A.J. 2023. A review of the status of sawflies of Great Britain - Phase 2: The Athaliidae and the Tenthredinidae (excluding Nematinae). Natural England, unpublished