Sawflies

As Sawflies are abundant at the moment I thought I would do a quick post about them

There are apparently 500 species in UK and many of them are like the examples below i.e distinctive,  and colourful with elongate bodies. They aren't always easy to identify despite their colourful bodies but they are quite photogenic.

Sawfly sp

This is how I like to photograph Sawflies with outstretched wings revealing their bodies and also the wing veination which can often help with identifying the species (in theory!)

Sawfly sp

However they don't often want to cooperate and as soon as they land they usually fold their wings back along their bodies hiding their true colours or just hinting at it through the semi transparent wings. For instance this ones body is black at the front and red at the rear but you can't really see it that well. At least this one has another interesting feature being the white tips of the antennae.

Sawfly sp

They really do come in a wide range of colours.....Green.....

Sawfly sp

....Black and Yellow. Even the legs are often colourful.

So anyway, I'll continue to look for the "posers" to get photos of, but it's not easy.

Sawfly Larvae

This "punk caterpillar" is a sawfly larvae but I've not been able to find out what the adult is like .I would like to think it is as impressive as the larvae!