Sawfly Larva

It is amazing—hand someone a camera and they start looking more closely at their surroundings just to find subjects to photograph.  They become aware of all sorts of creatures and plants with which they’ve always shared their existence but never noticed before. 
I found this little guy crawling along our deck railing.  I’ve been unsuccessful thus far in determining his identity other than that I am fairly certain that it is a sawfly larva.  It would be easier to identify if it were crawling on one of our plants or even better if it were eating a leaf.  From what I understand, the species are fairly specific as to what plant they ingest.
dogwood sawfly larva photo by Adrienne Zwart
It looks like a caterpillar, so at first I consulted my caterpillar field guide.  My daughter and I googled yellow-necked caterpillar (which was the closest resemblance in the field guide) and quickly realized that the yellow-necked caterpillar has stripes, not spots, and hairs which we didn’t notice at first in the field guide drawing.  So I went to my trusty www.BugGuide.net to type into the search window there hoping “yellow and black caterpillar” would bring up images of the same bug.  That is when we learned that not all caterpillars become moths or butterflies.  It most closely resembles the other sawfly larvae featured on the site, but nothing that looks like an exact match.
I’ve submitted an ID request there and hope one of their experts will be able to identify it for me.  If you ever find a bug that you’d like to know more about, I highly recommend their site.  They do have some guidelines for submitting a request, so be sure to read through them before you post a photo.
For more great animal photos, check out Camera Critters by clicking on the button below.
CCbadge
Update:  This is the last instar of the Dogwood Sawfly (Macremphytus tarsatus).  I hadn’t made the connection because he doesn’t look like the other caterpillars on the dogwood tree and he was up on the deck above our walk-out basement.  Thanks to Valerie for directing me to Adriondack Natural History for the ID.

Comments

Snap said…
He is quite colorful, isn't he?!!!! Good luck on the ID. Beautiful shot, Adrienne. (Have you redecorated lately or am I just noticing?!!!!!!)
Anonymous said…
Very unusual! I hope you find out what it is. Great clear photo!
We love Luna said…
Adorable yellow! Your picture is fabulous dear Adrienne, you are a great photographer!
Happy Camera Critters
purrs and love
Luna
Adrienne: What a neat little critter, I have used that site with much sucess.
Yes, that is a cute little critter. I hope you get an answer to what it is. Thanks for your nice comment on my blog.

I was enjoying your header photo, then, as I was reading your blog, I was realizing I really like the colors you have for everything. I also like the daily snippets of the Word. Lovely blog!
Valerie said…
Adrienne -

Did you see this posting on your larvae. Shows a picture almost similar.
http://adknature.blogspot.com/2009/08/caterpillar-look-alike.html

I think your right!
Beautiful Adrienne... He's a colorful one!!!! Hope you find his identity... I saw a new bird at the feeder today--but haven't identified it yet. I've been searching the internet --but so far, I'm not sure. Driving me crazy!!! Of course I did not get a picture...

Have a great weekend.
Hugs,
Betsy
Adrienne Zwart said…
Valerie, I think that's it! I was just looking at the whitish ones the day before. Hadn't made the connection since this one looked so much different than the others and was up on the deck. Thanks!
Manz said…
Terrific photo! And I love the post and exploration of knowledge!

The lead-in paragraph had me thinking about the movie Sabrina - when she has been asked to take photos for Linus at his beach home - she asks him what view he liked... and then made him look through the lens to do so... he instantly saw things differently.

Sorry - long comment! I'm not only a critter freak, I'm a movie fanatic ;)
Sue said…
What a cute wee bug! Thanks for the visit, and happy weekend :)
Adrienne Zwart said…
Snap, I have had this header and color scheme for awhile. I saved the fancy backgrounds for my other blogs where there aren't as many photos. I like the soft gray background here--it doesn't compete with my photos.
Squirrel said…
Nice critter photo!
I love Bugguide. Learn so much from it. Great capture!
said…
Fantastic photo you took!
squirrel said…
Very interesting and a good photo. I love caterpillars. I think sawflies have legs all the way down their bodies not just at the front and end like butterfly and moths caterpillars. Good detective work. Bug Guide rocks.
Carletta said…
He looks like he's looking straight at you.
Terrific shot!
Tomorrow I'm going out and puruse my dogwood tree branches. :)

Carletta’s Captures.
Tulip said…
love his golden color and chubby. ",)

my entry: http://southbrowneyes.blogspot.com/
Adrienne Zwart said…
Yes, Squirrel. I learned that as well--sawfly larvae have six true legs like other caterpillars, but they also have pro-legs at nearly every other segment where butterfly and moth caterpillars usually have only a few sets of pro-legs.
eileeninmd said…
Nice capture of the colorful caterpillar. Thanks for sharing your critter.
Kerri Farley said…
Quite a neat looking creature!!
amatamari© said…
You have absolutely right: the camera approaches the world of plants and animal, great discoveries and doubts, a wonderful journey as your picture shows.
Thanks!
Kelly said…
...very cool and good detective work! I feel the same way. With a camera in hand and a blog to write, I pay attention to the smallest part of nature now. I'm so happy!! Lovely little fella you captured...
I love that our cameras make us notice so many things that we would typically just glance over. This was a beautiful capture Adrienne!

Popular Posts