Sawfly Larvae Control in Your Garden
Hymenoptera : Pergidae
Sawfly larvae are the juvenile forms of adult sawflies of the family Pergidae. These sawflies are native insects related to wasps and are common throughout Australia. The common name 'Sawfly' comes from the saw-like appearance of the egg-laying apparatus (ovipositor) of female sawflies. The females use the 'saw' to cut slits in plants into which they lay their eggs. Sawflies do not sting.
Sawfly larvae superficially resemble caterpillars and they feed on the leaves of various native plants. The common name of some Sawfly species may derive from the native plant it feeds on, for example, 'Callistemon Sawfly'. Some Sawfly larvae are called 'spitfires' because of their repulsive defence tactic of rearing up and regurgitating thick yellow fluid to drive away predators.