Pristiphora mollis - Gentle Bilberry Sawyer
Species not placed in a group

Relatively few records, mostly from northern Britain with more isolated records in south Wales, Herefordshire and Nottinghamshire. Benson (1958) considered this species to be common in northern areas, including to the tops of the highest mountains (Musgrove, 2024).

The head and abdomen are mostly dark above and usually with the hind tarsus pale. Males are best determined by examination of the penis valves.

Pristiphora mollis larvae feed solitarily on bilberry and bog bilberry in upland areas.

Jump to other species of Pristiphora

Size: 6.0 - 7.5mm

GB IUCN status: Near Threatened
GB rarity status: Nationally Scarce

Distribution: England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland

Flight period: May to July

Plant associations: Vaccinium myrtillus and Vaccinium uliginosum (bilberry and bog bilberry)

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 Natural England, unpublished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