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Common Insects & Mites
Aphids
Asian lady beetle
Bark beetles
Brown marmorated stink bug
Brown soft scale
California gallfly
Conifer aphids
Cottony camellia scale
Cutworms and loopers
Earwigs
Eriophyid mites
Exotic longhorned beetles
Fall webworm
Inchworms
Leafhoppers
Leafminers
Leafrollers
Lecanium scale
Oystershell scale
Pamphilid sawflies
Pear slug
Root weevils
Sapsucker damage
Shothole borer
Skeletonizers
Slugs
Sowbugs, pillbugs, and millipedes
Spider mites
Spotted wing Drosophila (SWD)
Tent caterpillars
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Caption: Pine pamphilid sawfly larva
Photo by: A.L. Antonelli
Common Insects & Mites : Pamphilid sawflies
(revision date: 4/30/2013)
Use Integrated Pest Management (IPM) for successful plant problem management.
Biology
Sawflies are primitive wasps that do not sting. There are several families including pamphilids. Most of them are herbivores and while some feed on deciduous trees, most of the species in Washington feed on conifers. The larvae are caterpillar-like and can be rather large, up to an inch or more in length. They are webspinners and when finally noticed, one sees a sizeable "nest" of webbing, frass (small chunks of excrement), and chewed dead needles in the tree canopy. Larval feeding on needles can cause localized defoliation, but they are rarely a significant problem.
Management Options
Non-Chemical Management
Natural enemies usually suppress them.
Handpick and destroy larvae when possible.
Select non-chemical management options as your first choice!
Chemical Management
IMPORTANT:
Visit Home and Garden Fact Sheets for more information on using pesticides
Pesticides are rarely necessary.
Images
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Caption: Pine pamphilid sawfly larva
Photo by: A.L. Antonelli