Pristiphora geniculata - Rowan Sawyer
Species not placed in a group

Widespread north to Yorkshire, with an isolated record in Inverness. Benson (1958) could only list three records for this species, which has clearly increased significantly since his day. The southerly distribution is unusual for a Rowan-feeder (Musgrove, 2024).

The thorax and the abdomen are mostly black (completely on the sternites) and the hind femora are pale at the base and black at the apex. Males are best determined by examination of the penis valves.

Pristiphora geniculata larvae feed on Mountain Ash (including garden varieties such as Vilmorin's Rowan) and Red Chokeberry (where introduced).

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Size: Females: 6.5 - 7.5mm, males: 5.0 - 7.5mm

GB IUCN status: Least Concern
GB rarity status: None

Distribution: England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland

Flight period: May to June and July to August

Plant associations: Sorbus species including Sorbus aucuparia, and also Aronia arbutifolia (Mountain Ash and Red Chokeberry)

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 Natural England, unpublished

Prous, M., Kramp, K., Vikberg, V. and Liston, A., 2017. North-Western Palaearctic species of Pristiphora (hymenoptera, tenthredinidae). Journal of Hymenoptera Research, 59