Common or vernacular naming
It is an innate trait of humans to try to order the world around us. This is the case with all living things. In the 18th Century Carl Linneaus proposed a system of naming species that would allow the relationship between species to be indicated within the name. This binomial system of scientific, or Latin, naming has endured and evolved with strict rules. In the case of insects, the naming of species is overseen by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). Under the watchful eye of the ICZN all animal life is ascribed its binomial name and by such is given its place in the tree of life. As taxonomists better understand the boundaries between species and how those species relate to each other, the name may change but always in a manner that is both ordered and traceable.
Common names, also called vernacular names or trivial epithets, have their roots, not in science, but in social history. Trivial epithets are not set down in any international standards, nor are they in any way regulated. They do not come about as a result of any attempt to order or understand life and are entirely chaotic. The use of these trivial epithets in general is to be avoided when recording invertebrates.
As a rule, common names only exist were there has been a need for one person to convey recognition of a plant or animal to another person. A common name may reference a characteristic (e.g. Giant Horntail), habitat (e.g. Alder Wood-wasp) or geographic location of the species (e.g. Southern Hawker). A species will most likely have a common name if it fulfils one of the following criteria:
- The species, or group of similar looking species, is common and frequently seen
- The species, or group of similar looking species, is easily recognisable by eye
- The species, or group of similar looking species, is perceived as a pest or nuisance
- The species, or group of similar looking species, is charismatic, querky or has a specific habit or behaviour
Common names, despite their limitations, are to be valued if only as part of our cultural heritage. For example, woodlice (actually a number of different species) have over 40 common names in Britain alone. These names are part of a rich oral tradition and the name you use will likely indicate where in Britain you grew up. Occasionally, the common name may echo a point of scientific interest. For example, the Turnip Sawfly is the only common name used for Athalia rosae though most records these days would not reveal any association with turnips. The name is an echo of when Athalia rosae was a major pest of turnip crops when they were more widely grown as animal feed. The species came all but extinct in Britain in the early 20th Century before becoming widely distributed again in the latter part of the 20th Century but without the reliance on turnip crops.
More recently, there have been trends in attempting to assign common names to a wider range of species to engage public attention. This dilutes and muddies the oral tradition, though in instances where the species conforms to one of the above rules, there may be some merit in doing so. Perhaps a historically rare species has become common in recent times, or the species is newly arrived in the region and is a potential problem species (e.g. Zig-zag Sawfly). However, where a species is rarely encountered or recognised by the wider public, assigning common names is of little value as they are unlikely to be adopted and their use may even be an inconvenience to entomologists. Of concern is the fact that the same common name can refer to several distinct species. For example, “Birch Sawfly” is widely used to represent both Cimbex femoratus and Nematus septentrionalis. That trivial epithet also ignores the fact that there are 43 sawfly species in Britain and Ireland that feed on birches. Similarly, the same common name may be used in different countries for different species, which is a particular issue when using internet search engines.
One of the arguments put forward in favour of inventing new common names is that scientific names are too hard to remember. Certainly, trying to learn all the scientific names for a taxonomic group, such as the sawflies, in one go would be overwhelming. However, learning an individual species' name as it is encountered is often no more difficult than trying to remember a common name, and a species that is repeatedly encountered and identified soon has its scientific name tripping of the tongue. The invention of new trivial epithets is not to be encouraged. After all, in horticulture, gardeners readily use scientific names, at least in part, with ease (e.g. Rhododendron, Geranium, Salvia). Here the adoption by the hobbyist of the genus as a pseudo-common name is to be applauded.
Below are listed sawfly common names that appear to have become established over time. Only 43 species out of the 550 or so species present here appear to have established common names. Some common names that are peculiar to certain countries are included to illustrate some of the points above.
Common name order:
Alder Sawfly, Woolly Alder Sawfly | Eriocampa ovata |
Alder Wood-wasp | Xiphydria camelus |
Almond Sawfly | Cimbex quadrimaculatus |
Apple Sawfly | Hoplocampa testudinea |
Aruncus Sawfly | Euura spiraeae |
Ash Sawfly | Tomostethus nigritus |
Aspen Slug Sawfly | Caliroa tremulae |
Banded Honeysuckle Sawfly | Abia fasciata |
Banded Horntail | Urocerus flavicornis |
Banded Rose Sawfly | Allantus cinctus |
Berberis Sawfly | Arge berberidis |
Birch Leafminer | Fenusa pumila |
Birch Sawfly | Cimbex femoratus Nematus septentrionalis |
Black Grain-stem Borer | Trachelus tabidus |
Blackberry Sawfly | Cladius brullei |
Blackcurrant Sawfly | Euura olfaciens |
Bramble Sawfly | Arge cyanocrocea |
Common Gooseberry Sawfly | Euura ribesii |
Common Pine Sawfly | Diprion pini |
Curled Rose Sawfly | Allantus cinctus |
Dock False-worm | Ametastegia glabrata |
Dock Sawfly | Ametastegia glabrata |
Elm Leafminer (USA) | Kaliofenusa ulmi |
European Alder Leafminer (USA) | Fenusa dohrnii |
European Pine Sawfly | Neodiprion sertifer |
European Spruce Sawfly | Gilpinia hercyniae |
Falsa Acacia Sawfly | Euura tibialis |
Fern-stem Borer | Blasticotoma filiceti |
Figwort Sawfly | Tenthredo scrophulariae |
Geranium Sawfly | Ametastegia carpini |
Geum Leafminer | Metallus lanceolatus |
Giant Horntail | Urocerus gigas |
Gooseberry Sawfly | Euura ribesii |
Great Web‐spinning Pine Sawfly | Acantholyda posticalis |
Greater Horntail Wasp | Urocerus gigas Urocerus flavicornis |
Green Alder Sawfly (USA) | Monsoma pulveratum |
Honeysuckle Sawfly | Abia aenea Abia lonicerae |
Imported Pine Sawfly (USA) | Diprion similis |
Iris Sawfly | Rhadinoceraea micans |
Juniper Sawfly | Monoctenus juniperi |
Large Alder Sawfly | Cimbex connatus |
Lesser Horntail Wasp | Sirex noctilio |
Loosestrife Sawfly | Monostegia abdominalis |
Nursery Pine Sawfly (USA) | Gilpinia frutetorum |
Oak Sawfly | Periclista lineolata |
Oak Slug Sawfly | Caliroa annulipes Caliroa cinxia |
Oak Slugworm | Caliroa annulipes Caliroa cinxia |
Pale-spotted Gooseberry Sawfly | Euura leucotrocha |
Parasitic Wood-wasp | Orussus abietinus |
Pear and Cherry Slugworm | Caliroa cerasi |
Pear Slug Sawfly | Caliroa cerasi |
Pear-fruit Sawfly | Hoplocampa brevis |
Pear-shoot Sawfly | Janus compressus |
Pigeon Tremex | Tremex columba |
Pine False Webworm (USA) | Acantholyda erythrocephala |
Plum Sawfly | Hoplocampa flava Hoplocampa fulvicornis |
Plum-fruit Sawfly | Hoplocampa flava Hoplocampa fulvicornis |
Poplar Sawfly | Cladius grandis |
Poplar Tree Blotch leaf-miner (Iran) | Fenusella hortulana |
Privet Sawfly | Macrophya punctumalbum |
Raspberry Leafminer (Germany) | Metallus albipes |
Raspberry Leafminer (Netherlands) | Metallus pumilus |
Raspberry Sawfly | Monophadnoides rubi |
Raspberry Sawfly (Canada) | Cladius brullei |
Red Pine Sawfly (USA) | Neodiprion sertifer |
Red-headed Pine Sawfly | Acantholyda erythrocephala |
Reed-stem Borer | Calameuta filiformis |
Rose Bud Sawfly | Monardis plana |
Rose Leaf-rolling Sawfly | Blennocampa phyllocolpa |
Rose Sawfly | Arge ochropus Arge pagana |
Rose Shoot Sawfly (Czech, Germany) | Cladardis elongatula |
Rose Slug Sawfly | Endelomyia aethiops |
Scabious Sawfly | Abia candens Abia sericea |
Small Gooseberry Sawfly | Pristiphora appendiculata |
Small Pine Sawfly (Austria) | Gilpinia pallida |
Social Pear Sawfly | Neurotoma saltuum |
Solomon’s Seal Sawfly | Phymatocera aterrima |
Turnip Sawfly | Athalia rosae |
Violet Sawfly | Ametastegia pallipes |
Web-spinning Larch Sawfly | Cephalcia lariciphila |
Wheat-stem Borer | Cephus pygmeus |
White Pine Sawfly | Diprion similis |
White-horned Horntail (USA) | Urocerus albicornis |
Willow Sawfly | Cimbex luteus |
Willow Wood-wasp | Xiphydria prolongata |
Zig-zag Elm Sawfly | Aproceros leucopoda |
Zig-zag Sawfly | Aproceros leucopoda |
Scientific name order:
Abia aenea | Honeysuckle Sawfly |
Abia candens | Scabious Sawfly |
Abia fasciata | Banded Honeysuckle Sawfly |
Abia lonicerae | Honeysuckle Sawfly |
Abia sericea | Scabious Sawfly |
Acantholyda erythrocephala | Pine False Webworm (USA) Red-headed Pine Sawfly |
Acantholyda posticalis | Great Web‐spinning Pine Sawfly |
Allantus cinctus | Banded Rose Sawfly Curled Rose Sawfly |
Ametastegia carpini | Geranium Sawfly |
Ametastegia glabrata | Dock False-worm Dock Sawfly |
Ametastegia pallipes | Violet Sawfly |
Aproceros leucopoda | Zig-zag Elm Sawfly Zig-zag Sawfly |
Arge berberidis | Berberis Sawfly |
Arge cyanocrocea | Bramble Sawfly |
Arge ochropus | Rose Sawfly |
Arge pagana | Rose Sawfly |
Athalia rosae | Turnip Sawfly |
Blasticotoma filiceti | Fern-stem Borer |
Blennocampa phyllocolpa | Rose Leaf-rolling Sawfly |
Calameuta filiformis | Reed-stem Borer |
Caliroa annulipes | Oak Slug Sawfly |
Caliroa annulipes | Oak Slugworm |
Caliroa cerasi | Pear and Cherry Slugworm Pear Slug Sawfly |
Caliroa cinxia | Oak Slug Sawfly Oak Slugworm |
Caliroa tremulae | Aspen Slug Sawfly |
Cephalcia lariciphila | Web-spinning Larch Sawfly |
Cephus pygmeus | Wheat-stem Borer |
Cimbex connatus | Large Alder Sawfly |
Cimbex femoratus | Birch Sawfly |
Cimbex luteus | Willow Sawfly |
Cimbex quadrimaculatus | Almond Sawfly |
Cladardis elongatula | Rose Shoot Sawfly (Czech, Germany) |
Cladius brullei | Blackberry Sawfly Raspberry Sawfly (Canada) |
Cladius grandis | Poplar Sawfly |
Diprion pini | Common Pine Sawfly |
Diprion similis | Imported Pine Sawfly (USA) White Pine Sawfly |
Endelomyia aethiops | Rose Slug Sawfly |
Eriocampa ovata | Alder Sawfly, Woolly Alder Sawfly |
Euura leucotrocha | Pale-spotted Gooseberry Sawfly |
Euura olfaciens | Blackcurrant Sawfly |
Euura ribesii | Common Gooseberry Sawfly Gooseberry Sawfly |
Euura spiraeae | Aruncus Sawfly |
Euura tibialis | Falsa Acacia Sawfly |
Fenusa dohrnii | European Alder Leafminer (USA) |
Fenusa pumila | Birch Leafminer |
Fenusella hortulana | Poplar Tree Blotch leaf-miner (Iran) |
Gilpinia frutetorum | Nursery Pine Sawfly (USA) |
Gilpinia hercyniae | European Spruce Sawfly |
Gilpinia pallida | Small Pine Sawfly (Austria) |
Hoplocampa brevis | Pear-fruit Sawfly |
Hoplocampa flava | Plum Sawfly Plum-fruit Sawfly |
Hoplocampa fulvicornis | Plum Sawfly Plum-fruit Sawfly |
Hoplocampa testudinea | Apple Sawfly |
Janus compressus | Pear-shoot Sawfly |
Kaliofenusa ulmi | Elm Leafminer (USA) |
Macrophya punctumalbum | Privet Sawfly |
Metallus albipes | Raspberry Leafminer (Germany) |
Metallus lanceolatus | Geum Leafminer |
Metallus pumilus | Raspberry Leafminer (Netherlands) |
Monardis plana | Rose Bud Sawfly |
Monoctenus juniperi | Juniper Sawfly |
Monophadnoides rubi | Raspberry Sawfly |
Monostegia abdominalis | Loosestrife Sawfly |
Monsoma pulveratum | Green Alder Sawfly (USA) |
Nematus septentrionalis | Birch Sawfly |
Neodiprion sertifer | European Pine Sawfly Red Pine Sawfly (USA) |
Neurotoma saltuum | Social Pear Sawfly |
Orussus abietinus | Parasitic Wood-wasp |
Periclista lineolata | Oak Sawfly |
Phymatocera aterrima | Solomon’s Seal Sawfly |
Pristiphora appendiculata | Small Gooseberry Sawfly |
Rhadinoceraea micans | Iris Sawfly |
Sirex noctilio | Lesser Horntail Wasp |
Tenthredo scrophulariae | Figwort Sawfly |
Tomostethus nigritus | Ash Sawfly |
Trachelus tabidus | Black Grain-stem Borer |
Tremex columba | Pigeon Tremex |
Urocerus albicornis | White-horned Horntail (USA) |
Urocerus flavicornis | Banded Horntail |
Urocerus gigas | Giant Horntail Greater Horntail Wasp |
Urocerus flavicornis | Greater Horntail Wasp |
Xiphydria camelus | Alder Wood-wasp |
Xiphydria prolongata | Willow Wood-wasp |