EUURA PALLESCENS GROUP

Euura montana - Mountain Spruce Nematine, Mountain Spruce Sawfly

Nematus montanus Zaddach, 1883
Epicenematus montanus (Zaddach, 1883)

North to central Scotland, mostly in the north and west. Very few recent records, except notably that Enston & Williams (2023) found this to be the most numerous sawfly in their yellow-bowl study of two Welsh spruce forests. This supports the impression that many species of commercial forestry are very poorly recorded at present. Benson (1958) noted the species to be 'sometimes destructive' (Musgrove, 2024).

Orange yellow with black on the dorsal surface of the antennae (underside often brownish) and the anterior postocellar area. The female mesonotum has three black stripes, spots on the scutellum and the post-scutellar attachment, and along the midline of the dorsum of the abdomen. The male is black on the mesonotum, metanotum, more or less the scutellum, usually the mesepimeron and the top of the abdomen. In both sexes there is usually black on the rear coxae, outer side of the rear tibiae and tarsi.

Euura montana larvae feed on spruces including Norway Spruce and sometimes can be destructive. Ova are deposited onto young needles of the fresh shoots in spring. 

Size: 5.5 - 6.5mm.

GB IUCN status: Least Concern
GB rarity status: Nationally Scarce

Distribution: England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland

Flight period: April to May

Plant associations: Picea spp. (spruces) incl. Picea abies (Norway Spruce)

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

Muche, W.H., 1974. Die Nematinengattungen Pristiphora Latreille, Pachynematus Konow und Nematus Panzer (Hym., Temthredinidae). Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift, 21(1/3), pp.1-137.

Musgrove, A.J. 2024. A review of the status of sawflies of Great Britain - Phase 3: The Tenthredinidae (subfamily Nematinae). Natural England, unpublished

Prous, M., Liston, A., Kramp, K., Savina, H., Vårdal, H. and Taeger, A., 2019. The West Palaearctic genera of Nematinae (Hymenoptera, Tenthredinidae). ZooKeys, 875, p.63-127