Forest Pest Insects in North America: a Photographic Guide

European pine sawfly

Neodiprion sertifer (Geoffroy) (Hymenoptera: Diprionidae)

Orientation to pest

European pine sawfly, Neodiprion sertifer (Geoffroy), is a European species that is invasive in North America. It feeds on many species of pines. This sawfly occurs across Canada and widely in the eastern United States. The winter is passed as eggs, which hatch in early spring. Larvae feed gregariously on old needles. New foliage is never eaten. Larvae move from tree to tree as necessary for food. Mature larvae drop from foliage to the ground, where they spin a cocoon in the duff and pupate. Adults emerge in late summer and lay 6 to 8 eggs per needle in new foliage. There is one generation per year. Trees attacked by this sawfly are never killed because new foliage is not eaten. Damage consists of reduced tree growth in forests or loss of quality in Christmas tree plantations.

Hosts commonly attacked

European pine sawfly feeds on many species of pines, but especially on Scots (Pinus sylvestris L.), red (Pinus resinosa Sol. ex Aiton), jack (Pinus banksiana Lambert), Japanese red (Pinus densiflora Siebold & Zucc.), and Table mountain pines (Pinus pungens Lamb.). Other species of pines will also be defoliated if they grow near an outbreak of this sawfly.

Distribution

This sawfly is found in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia in Canada and in the eastern United States from New England west to North Dakota, and south to Missouri.

Images of European pine sawfly

Adult female of European pine sawfly Louis-Michel Nageleisen, Département de la Santé des Forêts, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Adult male of European pine sawfly (see enlarged antennae) Louis-Michel Nageleisen, Département de la Santé des Forêts, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Egg scars of European pine sawfly in needles of Scots pine Andrea Battisti, Universita di Padova, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Figure 1. Adults of European pine sawfly, Neodiprion sertifer; left, female; right, male (see enlarged antennae) Figure 2. Egg scars of European pine sawfly in needles of Scots pine
Larvae of European pine sawfly Gyorgy Csoka, Hungary Forest Research Institute, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Larvae of European pine sawfly Steven Katovich, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Pupal cocoons of European pine sawfly Jim Occi, BugPics, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Figure 3. Larvae of European pine sawfly Figure 4. Pupal cocoons of European pine sawfly
Damage to red pine by European pine sawfly larvae; note that only old needles are eaten Steven Katovich, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Damage to red pine by European pine sawfly larvae; note that only old needles are eaten Steven Katovich, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Larvae of European pine sawfly killed by a virus (note the characteristic position, hanging head down) John D. Kegg, New Jersey Department of Agriculture, Bugwood.org 768x512 / 1536x1024
Figure 5. Damage to red pine by European pine sawfly larvae; note that only old needles are eaten Figure 6. Larvae of European pine sawfly killed by a virus (note the characteristic position, hanging head down)

Important biological control agents related to this pest species

Important natural enemies of this sawfly include an imported European nuclear polyhedrosis virus that is used effectively as a biopesticide, and several European larval parasitoids, which have not provided control of this pest.

Web links for information on European pine sawfly

Articles

University of Massachusetts, PSIS/Entomology USDA Forest ServiceUniversity of Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem HealthUniversity of Georgia