Dolerus gonager

Recorded widely across all of mainland Britain, as well as Skye and Orkney (Musgrove, 2023).

In females, the abdomen is entirely black and red on the hind legs is restricted to the apex of the femur and base of the tibia. The outer setae of the sawsheath in dorsal view are angled backwards to form an acute angle. In both sexes, the side lobes of the mesonotum are shining though only weak punctures on their lateral face. Males best determined by shape of penis valves. 8-9mm.

Dolerus gonager larvae feed on grasses.

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GB IUCN Status: Least Concern
GB Rarity Status: None

Distribution: England, Scotland, Wales

Flight period: May to June

Plant associations: Graminaceae (grasses)

The National Biodiversity Network records are shown on the map below. (See terms and conditions)

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 Natural England, unpublished