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Bottlebrush Sawfly Larva

Pterygophorus cinctus

Photo by Leuba Ridgway
Published on Project Noah
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Field Notes

Description:

A segmented grub about 22 mm long. The body was mostly green with a pale orange tinge to the sides,head and tail. There were white tubercular specks on each segment with a concentration around the head area. At least 6 pairs of pro-legs were seen, with three pairs being distinctly thoracic.
The larva had a pointed tail about 4-5 mm long

Habitat:

Bottle brush shrub ( Callistemon sp)

Notes:

These are the larvae of sawflies - they feed on a variety of native plants. they are attractive but can decimate plants and sometimes kill them.

I found several of these larvae on a bottle brush shrub.

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (2)

Thanks martinl. My father, an artist, always used to say that light and shade made all things beautiful !! I did like the morning light - was worried that I might not quite get it - I struggle with macros with my Aldi pocket camera.
Nice photos Leuba. You make an ugly grub look rather attractive. The back-lighting in pics 1 and 2 is effective.
Photographed
PublishedJanuary 26, 2012

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